It's an Art
by Lina Cross
Summary: Even with the Harbingers still at large, things seem to be going okay for the next generation, until the twins start messing with things they shouldn't. Third in a trilogy, beginning with Of Forbidden, Nearly Illegal Love. R&R
1. Chapter 1

**This story might be darker than the last two, and there will be more raw emotions because it's seen from the POV of an artist. There will be a scene that I'll give you instructions for, just so you can get the full extent of the mood. Also, I dare you to listen to music while reading this. Everything is better with a soundtrack. **

**This also may be a lot like the original Harry Potter books. That's because the stories share similarities. I think it's cool this way, but you can think what you want. You don't even have to read.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Harry Potter or any of its characters. Also, yes, I know I'm screwing with the ages just a little. It works to my benefit, trust me. We'll call it artistic license, or magic, since that's the answer to everything.**

**. . .**

"Be good." said Ember, kissing her children goodbye as the train whistled. "Al, don't let anyone tease you for your stutter, okay? Arty, same goes for you and your height. Just box them like I told you."

"You're such a bad influence." Ginny laughed, hugging her own son.

"She's right, though." Ron said, who had opted to come purely to see if Ember would be teary-eyed and, if so, so he could poke fun at her. "And don't let Parkinson get under your skin. She's only full of hot air."

Unfortunately, Ember remained as collected as ever, as though the twins were leaving for a sleepover rather than for a year. She hugged each of them, hoping they had as good a time at Hogwarts as she did. Or, perhaps the word was _memorable_.

"And look out for Zabini." James put in. "He's a git."

"James! Language!" Ginny scolded.

"On the train, you two." Ember said. "Go on."

"Bye, Mum." said Arty, hugging her round the waist. "I love you."

"I love you, too, sweetie."

"L-love you too, Mum." Al said, giving her a hug as well. The twins boarded the train with James and waved out the window as the scarlet Hogwarts Express pulled away.

"James!" called a few students, waving him over. "Come on, we've got a compartment!"

He looked slightly uncomfortable. "Er... sorry. They want me to go-"

"It's okay." said Arty, shrugging. "We'll be fine. Come on, Al, let's find a place to sit.

**. . .**

Teddy Lupin wandered down the train, looking for a few of his friends to hang out with for a while, when he spotted a familiar first year with lots of freckles and long red hair. "Hey, Arty." he said, walking up to her and her brother. "Need any help?"

"His trunk is stuck." she said, gesturing to Al's luggage.

"First years," he sighed playfully, rolling his eyes as he bent to help out. "Always mucking things up."

"Oi! Not fair!" Arty laughed. "You muck things up, too!"

"Hey, sh!" he said quickly, straightening up. "Er, hey, Victoire. Got anywhere to sit?"

Arty rolled her eyes. "Come on, he's with his _girlfriend_." she said to Al, heading into the nearest empty compartment.

"Sh-shouldn't we have sat w-with James?" Al asked.

"He's off with his friends. It's all right, we can sit in here." she told him, putting her trunk up into the luggage rack. "At least we won't be alone."

A few minutes after this statement, there was a knock at the compartment door. Behind it stood a black girl with crazy black curls surrounding her head. Her clothes were brightly colored, and she had an air of confidence about her not unlike Arty's. She raised a dark eyebrow in a silent question. Arty nodded, and the girl entered.

"Hope you don't mind." she said in a cockney accent. "I'm Mickey. Mickey Turnley."

"I'm Arty. Arty Malfoy." said Arty, sticking out a hand for Mickey to shake.

"I-I'm A-Al." Al said quietly, also going to shake her hand.

Mickey looked a little taken aback. "Hey... I know I might look scary, but I won't hurt you."

"He's not scared." Arty said calmly. "He just has a stutter."

She blinked. "Oh. Well, then, pleased to meet you, A-Al."

He grinned. The twins figured they were going to like this girl.

"Where do you come from?" Arty asked.

"Liverpool." Mickey answered. "Bloody glad to leave the place, mind you. Far too much going on."

"Don't you like your family?" Arty asked.

Mickey snorted. "Well, yeah, they're my family. I like 'em. But, you know, with eleven kids and only a mum, it can get pretty chaotic. Not that chaos isn't alright in it's own way, but..."

Arty looked at her. "_Eleven_ kids? You have _ten _siblings?"

"Yeah. Why?"

Arty looked at her brother with big eyes. "And I thought spending a week at the Burrow was crazy!"

"What's the Burrow?" Mickey asked.

"It's where our Grandma and Grandpa Weasley live." she said. "Well, they're not _really_ our grandparents, since we're not really related. But it's close enough. But we spend a lot of time there because it's sort of the unofficial meeting place for everyone, like the other Weasleys, Teddy, the Potters... But, still, at home, it's just Al, Mum, and I."

Mickey looked up through her eyelashes. "So you don't have a dad, either?"

Arty shook her head, trying not to feel too bad. "He was killed by Harbingers when we were only a few months old."

"What's a Harbinger?"

The twins looked at her as though she were insane. "A-are you s-serious?" Al asked.

"Merlin's pants, Mickey!" Arty said. "Where've you been? They've only been terrorizing the wizarding world since before we were born!"

"Oi! I'm new at this, okay?" she exclaimed, and for the first time, the other girl seemed insecure. "I didn't even know I was magic till I got my letter, to be honest."

Arty and Al's eyes both grew wide as they realized their mistake. "Oh..." Arty said quietly. "You're Muggle-born. I get it."

"What's a Muggle?"

"N-non-magical p-person." Al said.

"It means you're the only witch in your family." Arty clarified.

"So you mean the others kids come from magical families?" Mickey asked.

"Most of them, yeah, but some others are Muggle-borns." Arty said casually. "It's just less common. Al and I are pure-bloods, but it doesn't really matter. As long as you can use magic, you'll be okay."

Mickey looked downright scared now. "But what if I get really behind? Like maybe my magic is defective?" She sucked in a breath. "What if I'm magically retarded?"

Al laughed and Arty snorted. "Relax, Mickey. There are _loads_ of other kids who have Muggle parents. I know Uncle Harry lived with his Muggle aunt and uncle and didn't even know he was magic until he got his letter. Mind you, his parents were both magic, but still..."

"W-what ab-bout Aunt H-herminony?" Al said, struggling with the name, as always.

"Oh, right." said Arty, brightening even more. "Our Aunt Hermione was Muggle-born, and she was the top witch in her class _and_ a prefect."

This caused Mickey to relax. "Oh, well, in that case, maybe it won't be so bad."

"You know, you're pretty cool." Arty said, leaning back and regarding the other girl. "I hope we're in the same House." She sighed good-naturedly at a look from Mickey. "There are four Houses at Hogwarts. Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. I'm aiming for Gryffindor, because that's what my mum was in. But Ravenclaw's good, too, and... well, I suppose Hufflepuff's alright. I've heard a lot of different things about Slytherin, though."

"Slytherin sounds evil." Mickey said.

"It used to be. Don't know if that's still the reputation, though." Arty said.

Just then, a woman came up to the compartment door. "Candy from the trolley?"

**. . .**

"Relax." said Arty, giving Mickey an encouraging squeeze of the hand as they waited to be sorted. "I've heard about Professor McGonagall. She's cool."

"Still." Mickey whispered back. "She's a bit scary-looking."

"Malfoy, Alastor!" Professor McGonagall called out.

The trembling red-head nervously walked up to the stool. The old, scary professor gave him an encouraging nod, so he sat down. She placed the Sorting Hat on his head and he sat quietly, waiting.

_You're a bit young, aren't you?Only ten._

Al started a bit, having not expected the hat to talk. _Erm... yes... Mum says we're very bright._

_Indeed. Well, despite your timidity, I'd rather say GRYFFINDOR_!

With a sigh of relief, Al jumped off the stool and headed over to the table, where all the Weasleys and Potters were already sitting. They clapped for him, excited for his acceptance.

"Malfoy, Cecelia!"

Arty walked confidently up to the sorting hat. She tossed her long red hair back and sat, allowing Professor McGonagall to place the old hat on her head.

_Hello!_ She thought immediately. She could almost hear the hat chuckle.

_Certainly more lively than your brother, I see_.

_Al's fun. You just need to get to know him._

_I suppose there's no question. GRYFFINDOR!_

The clapping ensued as Arty hopped off the stool and headed over to the table. She smiled at Teddy and James, excited for her first year at the famous Hogwarts. The train ride had, in her opinion, been much too long of a wait.

"Way to go, Ar-"

"Shush." she said, silencing Teddy with a finger. "I want to see where Mickey goes."

"Mickey?" 

"Sh."

Arty fidgeted a little in her seat, waiting impatiently for Mickey's name to be called. Finally,

"Turnley, Mikayla!"

The girl walked up to the stool, looking around nervously as though for help. She sat down, and the Sorting Hat was placed on her head. She sat there for a very long time, totally still and silent. The entire Hall was hushed, waiting as the hat debated. Then,

"_GRYFFINDOR!_"

Arty and Al clapped hardest at their table. Mickey spotted them and sat next to Arty, looking relieved. "Glad that's over."

"What t-took so l-long?" Al asked.

"It wanted to put me in Hufflepuff." she admitted.

"My mum was in Hufflepuff." said Teddy, nudging her a little. "At least, that's what I've heard. Means you're loyal. But it put you in Gryffindor, which must mean you're brave, too."

"Why did she call you Cecelia?" Mickey asked, turning back to Arty.

"Oh, that's easy." she said casually, tossing her hair back over her shoulder. "My first name is Cecelia, but Al could never pronounce it, so everyone just started calling me Arty instead, since my middle name is Artemis."

Mickey was about to say something else when Professor McGonagall stepped up to the staff table and called for silence.

"Welcome, new students." she said. "We're very pleased to have you here. My name is Professor McGonagall, and I am headmistress here at Hogwarts.

"Before we eat, I must go over a few overall rules. One is that the forest on the grounds is _out of __bounds_! That goes for _everyone_. Anyone caught in said forest will be given a detention. Secondly, no magic is to be used in corridors between classes. This is a rule for the safety of others. Quidditch try-outs will be held in the second week of term, as usual. That is all. Let us eat!"

"Don't worry." Arty said to Mickey. "There's loads of rules, but I'm sure Teddy can fill you in on them. It's possible he's broken them all."

"Twenty-two down, forty-seven to go." Teddy joked.

"I just hope I don't fail." Mickey said. "That's all I want."

"You won't." James said firmly. "It's a lot harder than you might think, failing. You'll be fine."

**. . .**

**There. Huge-ass first chapter. This is really more of a prologue, since the rest of the story won't be their first year, it'll be their fifth. I hope this was a good start.**


	2. Chapter 2

I laid on my bed, staring up at my paint-splattered ceiling. Still three weeks until school started. I was so _bored_ around the house, doing nothing. Mum was at work a lot these days, trying to keep the Harbingers under control. I never said it, but I was a bit scared for her. She seemed to be the biggest target, and I think that was because she'd foiled their plans so many times. Already, I'd heard about the death of a man named Christopher Peters. He'd been a friend of Mum's, and also of Al and me. It had been hard to take.

"_Argh!_"

I shot off the bed and ran out of my room, following the grunting sounds of my brother. "Al!" I called. "What's the matter?"

"Your b-bloody _bird_ is th-the matter!" he exclaimed as I entered the kitchen. I had to keep myself from laughing. He was covered in milk from his flipped cereal bowl, and he was trying in vain to push an excited owl away.

I shook my head, chunky earrings jangling. I was five feet, four inches tall, freckled, had deep red hair like my mum, and she told me I had gray eyes like my dad. I liked to wear headbands and chunky jewelry, and I had a habit of slipping into a cockney way of speaking sometimes, which I received from my best friend, Mickey.

My brother and fraternal twin, Alastor Troy, had red hair, some freckles, and brown eyes. He took to wearing casual button-up shirts with the sleeves rolled halfway up his forearms, along with Converse shoes and the occasional tie wrapped around his head. He stuttered badly, but he wasn't very shy, and he liked to laugh. We looked a lot alike, but not enough for some people to guess we were twins.

I whistled. "Come here, Leo!"

The owl happily flew in my direction. I let him land on my shoulder and nuzzle me a bit, then I took the letter from his leg. "What've you got for me, Leo?"

Leo was my very own tawny owl. He was named for the artist Leonardo Da Vinci, because I liked him. Al, on the other hand, had been given an odd animal. The family pet, a shape-shifter named Merlin, had run off with some cat or dog or some such animal, and we were left with him and his shape-shifting spawn. She wasn't purple, like Merlin. She was brown with black spots. She could transform into any animal, as long as it had fur. Merlin could be any animal, but his daughter was only part shape-shifter, so it made sense. Al had named her Panacea, the goddess of healing.

"See, m-my pet doesn't d-do that!" he said in irritation, wiping milk off his face.

"Hush a moment, I'm reading." I told him, scanning the letter. "Well, what do you know. It's an invitation."

"To what?"

"Vacation." I said. "The Weasleys and the Potters are going on a family trip, and they've invited us."

"W-what about Mickey?" he asked, looking over my shoulder.

"Hang on." I said, reading more carefully this time. "Yep. Grandma says Mickey can come, too." I smirked. "I'm sure she thinks it's for our sake. But James will be plenty pleased."

"H-how can you b-be so sure he likes her?" Al asked.

"It's obvious." I said. "Just because they haven't seen it doesn't mean no one else has. Don't tell me you haven't, either, I know you have."

He didn't answer, so I took Leo into my room and picked up my phone to invite Mickey. I could have sent her a letter using Leo, but it freaked her family out less when I called.

But, just as I was flipping through the contacts, she called me.

"Great timing, Mick." I said. "I was just about to call you."

"That's great. Erm... Can I come over?"

I was a bit taken aback. "Why?"

"Things at my place... aren't too good right now. If I could maybe..."

I found myself nodding, then I realized she couldn't see that. "Yeah, of course. Do you remember how to use the Floo Powder?"

She snorted. "Was I supposed to forget? After last year? Not bloody likely."

I grinned. "Good. Come over, then."

I hung up and went into the living room to wait. "Al!" I called. "Can you get the dustbin?"

"Why?" 

"We're going to need it."

A few moments later, a tall black teenager with crazy black curls came tumbling out of the fireplace, her jeans and violet vest covered in soot. "Wotcher, Arty." she said brightly, dusting herself off as she stood.

"Teddy's not here, Mick, it's no good." I said, helping her up. Mickey had a sort of crush on Teddy Lupin, who was in seventh year. He said 'wotcher' all the time, which was weird, since it was really old slang for, "What are you doing?" Mickey had, unfortunately, decided this was a good way to get his attention, so she said it whenever he was around.

"Hi, M-Mickey." said Al, starting to sweep up the ashes. 

"Al!" she exclaimed, giving him a hug. He grinned, not bothering to dust off his clothes afterward. "I've got a present for you! Well, actually, one for both of you, but his is cool."

"Oh, thanks, Mickey." I said, rolling my eyes and grinning as we all sat on the couch. She produced two small boxes from her pockets and, after checking the tags, handed one to each of us. I wasted no time in ripping off the wrapping paper and opening the box. Inside were two large, colorful hoop earrings; just the way I liked them.

"Mick, these are fabulous!" I exclaimed, hugging her. "Thank you!"

"Do you like yours, Al?" she asked, looking over at my brother on her other side.

He was staring into his own shallow box, looking surprised. "Th-thank you, Mickey." he said.

"Well, what is it, then?" I asked, leaning over.

He reached in and pulled out a necklace. I raised my eyebrows. "Oh, now that's beautiful."

The chain was thick and spirally, and it was gold. The pendant on the end was a caduceus, the symbol of doctors. It was shiny, not too big, and not too feminine. Perfect for Al.

We both had figured out what we want to be. Well, mostly. I was still between a professor at Hogwarts and an artist. But Al was dead set on being a Healer at Saint Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries. Ever since he watched them heal Uncle Harry after a Harbinger attack, he wanted to be the one to make people well again.

"How much did this cost?" I asked.

"Does it matter?" Mickey replied. "Happy birthday."

I grinned at my earrings for another moment before I remembered what I had been calling Mickey for in the first place. "Oh, right. You want to go on vacation with us, the Weasleys, and the Potters?"

She bit her lip. "I don't know..."

"Please?" said Al.

"It depends." she said. "Like, on my mum. If she lets me. I don't know if I can convince her..."

"Teddy's gonna be there," I sang.

"Where's your phone?"


	3. Chapter 3

"So... Side-Along Apparition?" I asked. We were all supposed to meet up at the Burrow for this family vacation.

Mum nodded. "If Mickey's alright with that."

"No problem." Mickey said. "I've done it before, back in third year when Arty and... We should probably get going." she said quickly, realizing she was getting into dangerous territory.

"Right then," Mum said, holding out her arms. "Get a firm hold on your things and take a hand. That's it. Hang on." She closed her eyes, and suddenly there was a crack and I felt like my very essence was being shoved through a straw. That was alright. I'd done it before.

We ended up on a hill down the road from the Burrow, the house of the Weasleys. The walk felt longer than usual, though, possibly because we were carrying all our luggage.

"Okay, you know what? This is ridiculous." said Mum, pulling out her wand and dropping her bags. "Kids, drop your things. _Locomotor Bags_!"

Our luggage began to levitate before us, and Mickey grinned. "Cool."

"There. Now we don't have to carry our own things like some sort of animals." Mum said stuffily. We knew she was joking. She liked to act like a stereotypical Pure-Blood for fun sometimes. We continued our walk, considerably lighter. We hardly got through the front gate when we were mobbed by a collection of brunettes, red-heads, and some black-haired boys.

"Arty! You're all coming, then?" asked Rose Weasley, looking thoroughly excited.

"Wouldn't miss it." I told her.

"Hello, Mickey." said James Potter, carefully casual.

"James!" said Mickey. "Did you see the latest broom model?"

I turned away from them, grinning, to see Albus Potter, Fred Weasley, and Al already discussing potions. They were awful when it came to experimenting. Mind you , they were each brilliant, but they almost blew up the chicken coup last summer.

"You're rooming with Lily, Victoire, Dominique, and I on the trip." said Rose as she walked with me into the house.

"Are they here yet?" I asked. "Victoire and Dominique, I mean."

"Yeah, you're the last to arrive. Louis is here, too, and so is-"

"NO!" I squealed, slipping on one of the stairs and tumbling backward. I shut my eyes, bracing myself to hit the floor, when I landed on something quite a bit softer. I looked and saw a mess of blue hair and mischievous blue eyes looking back. "Come here often?" he asked a quirked eyebrow.

"Good reflexes." I complimented as he put me down. "Wotcher, Teddy." I said with a wink.

He winked back. "Wotcher, Arty. Did you come here with your other half, or did you simply fall from the sky?"

"You're cute. Al's with the other two demons planning how to destroy the house." I told him.

"Ah. The chaos is calling me. Good day, my lady." he said, leaving the house.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd be concerned." said Rosie, eyebrow raised as she waited for me on the stairs.

"What?" I asked, going up again.

"Oh, don't play dumb. If he wasn't so madly in love with Victoire, I'd say he'd accidentally fallen for you. As it stands, though..." She regarded me with a haughty expression. "I think you're safe."

I looked at her a beat longer before her facade cracked and we both laughed. "Right." I said. "Because Teddy _definitely_ goes for girls three years younger than him."

"Especially tiny ones." She looked at me. "No offense, by the way. I'm sure Louis is way into short girls."

I snorted. "Thanks for the confidence booster, Rosie. I was in serious need of one of those."

"Of course _you_ weren't. Nothing fazes you." she said. "You can put your things in here. This is where we'll be staying tonight."

"Arty!" said a stunning blond with a slight French accent. "You made it!" It was Victoire Weasley, Teddy's long-term girlfriend. She was sitting on the bed, talking to Lily Potter.

"Yes, I did." I agreed. Something about Victoire had always put me off. Her sister, Dominique, was okay, I suppose. To my knowledge, they hadn't ever really done anything to me. But it was just one of those things where you couldn't explain it, you just had a part of you that didn't like someone. I liked to blame it on chemistry. Some people just didn't mix, and that was okay. It was how life worked.

"Louis was looking for you." she said. "He wanted to show you something."

"Where is he now?" I asked, feeling butterflies already blossoming in my stomach as I dropped my things.

"Probably with Dominique in the kitchen." Victoire said. "That's where they were last."

"Okay. I'll... be back later." I said, backing out of the room.

"Have fun." Rose sang with a smirk. I made a face at her and began going back down the stairs to the kitchen. Louis was Victoire's younger brother and Dominique's elder. He was solid, handsome, and had red hair like his father, Uncle Bill. He had freckles, too. They all did, just in varying amounts. I found him and Dominique in the kitchen, just like Victoire said, chopping vegetables for dinner. They were both turned around and hadn't seen me yet.

"Erm, yes, I'll have a salad, lots of lettuce, some carrots, a few berries, and hold the mushrooms. Immediately." I said in my best, snottiest imitation of Petunia Parkinson.

They both turned and saw me. Louis grinned. "You had me going there, for a moment. I _actually_ thought it was Parkinson."

"It comes with being her favorite target." I said casually, sitting in one of the chairs. On the outside, I was completely at ease. On the inside, I was freaking out. "Victoire said you wanted to show me something?"

He nodded. "Yeah, take a look at this. I'll help cut vegetables in a moment, Dom." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a scrap of paper. It looked like it had been cut from a newspaper or something. He unfolded it and showed me the article he'd cut out.

"What's this?" I asked.

"It's about a museum." he said. "An art museum, actually, in the Isles of Scilly, where we're going. It's said to be rather good. I saw it in the _Prophet_ one day and thought of you."

I couldn't breathe. _Me_? Of all the beautiful girls he knew (and there were a lot. I wasn't kidding when I said Louis was handsome) he'd thought of _me_? I tried to gather myself as I took the article. "Thanks. I'll read up on it before we go."

"I was thinking that maybe we could go there together." he said. "There's bound to be times when we can go site-seeing. Maybe you want to go?"

Before I could stop myself, I found my mouth already saying, "Yes! Of course, that sounds great. Er... yeah. Great." I winced internally. Stupid, stupid, stupid! Don't come off as desperate! "We'll, er... talk about it later."

He smiled at me in that wonderful way. "It's a date."

I nodded and stood, walking with controlled steps out of the kitchen. Then, I ran back upstairs and was coming up to the room just as Mickey was exiting it. I grabbed her arm and pulled her with me as I walked.

"Argh! Arty, what-"

"Do you know what just happened?" I whispered, pulling her into a random, empty room.

"Er, no, but I'm sure you're going to tell me." she said uncertainly.

"Louis Weasley asked me out on a _date_." I said excitedly. She squealed, and I clamped a hand over her mouth. "Shh! Keep your voice down!"

"Sorry!" she giggled. "Are you serious? When? Where? Dish!"

I told her all about the conversation between Louis and I. By the end, she was grinning from ear to ear. "Oh, my God! That's fantastic! He's thinkin' about you when you're not there! That's got to be a good sign, right?"

"I hope so." I said. "It was so unexpected! And I just started babbling like an idiot. I hope it's okay."

"It'll be fine." Mickey assured me. "You're the bravest girl I know."

"Erm... Bad time?"

We turned to see Teddy standing in the doorway with a raised eyebrow. "Why? What do you need?" I asked.

"Well... this _is_ my room." he said, gesturing around. "I was wondering if I could have it back."

I felt embarrassed. There I was, turned into some sort of silly girl I always made fun of, and I'd had no idea what I was doing. I'd need to keep myself in check. "Right. Yeah, we were just leaving." I said, looking around casually. I blinked, then smirked. "Nice boxers, by the way." I said, referring the the Quaffle-covered underwear draped over a chair.

"Get out."

"Leaving."


	4. Chapter 4

**Sorry, guys, that would be the Isles of _Scilly_ at which they are vacationing. I was never good at geography, but reading shouldn't be that hard XD. I've corrected the mistake and re-uploaded the third chapter. **

**. . .**

It was five in the morning when we were all awoken.

"Come on, Arty." said Rosie. "We need to get ready."

"No." I groaned into my pillow. "It's summer. I'll get up when I damn well please."

"Come on, or Gran will come up, and _she'll_ be getting you out of bed."

That got me to roll off my camp bed. I was not in the mood for a bucket full of ice water or whatever else she had in mind. I began getting dressed while I got my stuff together, and then us girls trooped down the stairs to breakfast.

"Hurry up, now! We have reservations at the wizard hotel and I don't want to be late!" Grandma said, dishing out heaps of bacon and eggs on each plate.

"Morning." said Louis, striding into the kitchen as though he'd been up for hours. I was suddenly aware of how terrible my hair looked, then became even more self-conscious as he caught my eye. I knew there was an empty chair next to me, so I scooted over slightly as a sign that he should sit there. He gave a slight nod in my direction with a tiny smile.

"Mind if I take this seat? No? Thanks." said Teddy without pause, flopping down in the chair beside me. He was soaking wet, which meant he'd gotten the wake-up treatment I'd avoided.

I stared at him. "Teddy!" I exclaimed, angry that he'd taken that _one spot_ I'd wanted Louis to sit in.

He looked at me in confusion. "What?"

I rolled my eyes and returned to my food, not answering him. He didn't seem to care and just started pouring milk into his cup. I looked over at Louis and made a face that was something like, 'Sorry'. He gave a small shrug in return, as though to say, 'Don't worry about it'.

"Morning, everyone!" said Aunt Hermione happily, walking into the room. Uncle Ron followed, accompanied by Uncle Harry, both with messy hair and looking like they'd much rather be back in bed.

"Morning, sweetie." Hermione said, kissing Rosie and Hugo on their cheeks.

"Aunt Hermione, _how_ do you do that?" Teddy asked, sleep still lacing his voice.

"Do what?"

"Be so b-bloody awake." Al said, rubbing his gray eyes.

"Oh, it comes with practice, sweetheart." she said dismissively.

"Practice I could live without." Ron muttered to Harry.

Mum stumbled in shortly after, still pulling her jacket on and looking like she'd just rolled out of bed. Ah, the things I inherited. "Right. Food?"

"There's some left, dear, here you are." Grandma said, giving Mum a plate of breakfast. "Sleep well?"

"Like a rock." she said, which Al and I knew was a lie. Mum was the lightest sleeper we knew, and sometimes she'd wake up in the middle of the night for no reason. "When are we leaving?"

"Soon as everyone's done eating, I suppose." said Grandma. I saw Teddy and James look at each other with huge eyes and bolt down the rest of their food. Typical. They were always the last done packing.

"Are we getting there by Floo Powder?" Mickey asked.

"Yes, dear. I just hope we have enough for all of us."

"Harry and I brought extra, Mum, it's alright." said Aunt Ginny. "Lily, eat your food, don't play with it."

I looked around, noting that Mickey and James were sitting next to each other, but at the same time, she was looking over at Teddy. I wondered how a triangle like that could possibly be happening in _my _life when I realized she wasn't gazing at his looks. "Teddy!"

"What?" he asked, giving me a blank look.

"Y-your _hair_!" I exclaimed.

He gave me an exasperated look. "This may come as a surprise to you, Arty, but unlike you, I do not have copious amounts of hair and, therefore, have _no idea_ what it looks like right now."

"It's red!" I said. "Bright red!"

"Is it?" he said ponderously. "That's interesting."

I couldn't stop staring. Of course, I knew he was a Metamorphmagus (someone who could change their appearance at will), but I'd never seen him change anything without his knowledge. I had no idea if this was a common occurrence, but it was weird.

"Make it purple!" Lily cried.

"What kind of purple?" he asked. She looked confused, so he transformed the color. "It can be dark... Or light... Or bluish... Or reddish... Or more on the pink side..."

"What about rose?" asked Victoire. "That's a pretty color."

Teddy smiled at her and his hair changed to a romantic pink. I rolled my eyes. Roses came in many colors. They came in red as well as pink, white, orange, and, my personal favorite, yellow. Simply saying _rose_ helped no one where colors were concerned. I would know, as I based most of my life around colors.

"All right, everyone, get ready now." said Grandma, effectively causing James and Teddy to run up the stairs and finish packing. "Harry, dear, could you get your extra Floo Powder? There's a good boy. Right then. Everyone ready? Those two boys upstairs can be the last to go. Ember, sweetie, you're first."

**. . .**

The Isles of Scilly were gorgeous. They had lush green stretches of grass, huge beaches with white sand, and perpetually sunny whether. It was hot, too, but it was a wonderful. The hotel, called The Island Palace, was only for wizards, which meant that no Muggles could see it. It was beautiful, too. The floors were cool marble, there were tropical plants all over, and there were shiny lifts everywhere. We had rented several rooms, and each had wonderfully soft beds and a balcony. I was wondering how we could possibly pay for all of this when I heard Harry and Mum talking about some sort of competition winnings paying off the entire trip.

The whole time, things were planned. Swimming in the ocean, activities in the hotel, some free classes, shows, and other such things. We were staying on more of a resort than anything else. It seemed Louis and I would never get time to go see the art museum. Not that we weren't having fun, but we just didn't seem to get much time to talk. Again, at the same time, I didn't mind this drawback. If I did get time to talk to Louis, I was sure major stuttering on the Al level would occur.

On the third day, Mickey and Roxanne Weasley (Uncle George and Aunt Angelina's daughter. Unfortunately, they couldn't come, as they had to manage Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, but their children were able to go) had gone to explore the surrounding area. Mickey had left with a wink at me, saying, "Now's as good a time as any for site-seeing, don't you think?"

I grinned, knowing exactly what she meant. The only thing planned for the rest of the day was a bonfire on the beach at night. That meant we were free to do what we wished until then. I headed to the girls' shared hotel room, going to change out of my swimsuit and into a decent date outfit.

**. . .**

**There it is, fourth chapter. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, everyone!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Just had to re-upload the _last_ chapter, too, because I kept spelling "beach" wrong. -_-**

**So, at the ellipses (the three big dots that signify a transition) I would suggest going on Youtube and finding the song Kingdom Dance from Tangled. That's what I was listening to.**

**. . .**

After about twenty minutes, I felt I had a decent outfit picked out. A violet tank-top beneath a brown knitted poncho. Then, of course, my trademark torn and paint-stained jeans with some brown sandals covered in yellow flowers. My hair I just left as I usually had it (after it was dry, of course); down, with scattered tiny braids. My jewelry was numerous, as I liked; large bracelets, giant earrings, and about six necklaces of varying lengths. I felt presentable.

I left the room and headed down the hall to where the boys were staying, preparing to ask Louis if he was ready to go on that museum trip. I knocked, attempting to get the butterflies in my stomach under control.

But it wasn't Louis who opened the door. It was Teddy. He raised an eyebrow. "You clean up good, Malfoy. Not too shabby."

"Oh, it's you." I said before I could stop myself. "I mean, is Louis in there?"

He blinked, and something seemed to click in his mind. "Louis? Oh, he's out."

"Out where?" I said reproachfully. "Er, I mean... is he with his sister?"

"Which sister? My girlfriend? I wouldn't know."

I blinked. "Speaking of whom, shouldn't you be serenading her right about now or something?"

"My lady has opted to explore the various shopping centers with the lovely Rose. Serenading would only make the crowds uncomfortable." he said amiably, leaning against the door-frame as though prepared to just chat all day. "So what are you looking for Louis for, anyway?"

I could feel a blush creeping up my cheeks as I averted my eyes. "I – we... We were going to the art museum." I said quietly. Why was he asking? It wasn't _his_ business!

"Art museum." he said, as though interested. "Sounds wonderful. Mind if I come?"

"Er – I don't-"

"Arty?" said someone from within the room. "Teddy, is that Arty out there?"

"No, sorry, just some random tipsy girl looking for a good time. She's not too unappealing, if you want to have a go."

"_Teddy_!"

Louis pushed his way past Teddy and rolled his eyes at me. "I can take it from here, Ted, if you're okay with that. We have plans."

Teddy took on an expression of surprise. "Oh! There you are, Louis! Have fun on your date, you two. Don't get up to any nonsense, now."

Louis took the liberty of closing the door in Teddy's face and lead me down the hall. "I'm sorry about that. If I hadn't let him answer the door..."

"It's alright." I said, tossing my hair back. "That's just the way he is. So... we're going to the museum now?"

"That was the plan. Er... unless you want to do something else." he offered.

"No, no, the museum's fine." I said quickly. "That's why I was at your door. Well, not _your_ door, of course, since it's the hotel's, but... Er, you know what I mean." I finished lamely.

He smiled down at me. "You look great, by the way."

I felt the blush coming back. "Thanks. You do, too." I said honestly. He was wearing a light blue button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up and faded jeans. It looked good on him. After a moment of silence in which we walked through the front gardens of the hotel, I asked, "So where is this museum, anyway?"

"Not far. It's only down the street and to the right." he told me. "There's an exhibit on Van Gogh, if you want to see that, first."

"Oh, whatever we come across is fine." I said. Not long after, we were walking up the front steps of the museum. It wasn't a huge place, but it was pretty, with colorful gardens in the front and stone pillars on either side of the door. Just after we walked in, we came across a stained-glass exhibit, where Louis pulled me aside. In the glow of the colored window, I felt the butterflies cease as I looked at his face. He smiled down at me and produced a flower from nowhere – a light pink rose.

"I thought pink was the best color for you." he said quietly as I accepted it.

I grinned, for some reason not feeling nervous anymore. I took his hand and pulled him with me as we walked through the museum, showing him my favorite artists and pieces. I began _enjoying_ myself. I had no idea where the butterflies had gone, but I was totally fine as long as they were away.

**. . .**

"How was your trip to the museum?" Mickey asked slyly as we got ready for the bonfire.

"It was fantastic!" I said. "There was a Van Gogh exhibit, and then there was one for DaVinci which I _loved_, and they had a place where kids could paint their own picture, but of course, I had to try it, and I discovered someone named _Chihuly_ who does blown glass, and-"

"Arty!" she laughed, cutting me off. "What about _Louis_?"

I blinked. "Oh, I didn't mention? He gave me a rose by a stained-glass window. It was beautiful." I said. "He didn't paint with me, though, but I think he didn't want to get paint on his nice shirt, and that was alright. There. What do you think of this?" I slipped my new sundress over my head and turned, showing Mickey.

"Oh, Louis is gonna _love_ you." she said.

"Arty, that's very pretty." said Victoire.

I gave a small smile. For once, I agreed with her. The dress was white, but covered in yellow circles of varying sizes. It tied off around my neck with yellow strings that had wooden beads on them, and I paired that with my sandals that had yellow flowers. I managed to do my hair a little better, having re-brushed it and braided a few yellow flowers in.

However, when we got to the beach, I learned I should have just left the sandals back in the room. When I hit the sand, I ditched the shoes and stood with Al and Mickey. "Do anything fun today?" I asked my brother as the fire was lit. He just got this smile on his face that meant he was probably having _too_ much fun. "I'm going to guess that you were with Fred and Albus?"

"Y-you would guess c-correctly." he said, the satisfied grin firmly in place.

I shook my head and enjoyed the light of the fire. After a while, a magical band came out and began playing music for us to dance to. I was extremely happy. I loved dancing around, and the mood was almost intoxicating. The sky was dark and full of stars, the fire burned bright and huge, the beat was fast and intense, and my bare toes squished in the sand as I spun. Louis came and danced with me a while, and that was fantastic. I was starting to think he truly did like me.

I remember at one point I sort of lost myself. I threw myself into the moment, eyes closed as my feet hit the sand. I was conscious of someone grabbing my arms and twirling with me. I didn't know who it was, and I didn't care. I was having one of those times when I could _feel_ everything. I normally painted during these times, but dancing was just as good. My partner spun me in and out, pulled me close and pushed me away, all with just as much passion as I. It was almost like we were high, unable to know our surroundings besides through emotion. I felt like I was _flying_.

Then the song ended suddenly with a flourish, and my partner and I stopped, breathing heavily. The others stopped, too, but not as intensely. It took a moment for my vision to clear so I could see the person holding me. But when I saw who it was, I immediately stepped back and pushed him away. "What are you doing?" I hissed.

"Sorry." Teddy said, blinking as though noticing me for the first time. "I... er..."

"What will Victoire say?"

"Let's find out."

We turned to see the blond in question looking at Teddy with a venomous glare. "Explain?"

"I – Vicky, don't be like that, I-"

"I cannot believe this." she said, storming off. Teddy followed without a second glance at me, which kind of hurt for some reason. I shook off the irrational feeling and blinked, wondering exactly what had just happened, when Al came up.

"W-what was that?" he asked quietly so no one else could hear. Al was cool like that. He liked to get information before accusing people of things.

"He's going to drive me insane." I said, shaking my head. "If I run into him one more time..."

"Want to walk?" he asked.

I nodded, and we began heading away from the bonfire and down the stretch of beach. I told him about the times I'd run into Teddy and how weird he'd acted every time, and I also told him about Louis and how I liked _him_ a lot, and then I finished by explaining to the best of my ability why I wasn't _intentionally_ dancing with Teddy.

"So you see how annoying it is." I said conversationally, climbing a cluster of boulders way down the beach. "I just wish he would-"

"What?" 

"Sh!" I hissed, clamping a hand over Al's mouth and pulling him down behind the boulders. We listened for a moment, and then he heard them, too. The voices. None that we recognized.

"They're here now! They expect nothing! Why can't we just take her out?" one man was saying.

"Patience." said another, deeper-voiced man. "The time will come. Malfoy is a difficult target to hit, but she will be taken care of."

"But she's on vacation!"

"You think she has her guard down now? It is more than likely that she is more alert than ever simply because of that. Do not underestimate her. She has eluded us this long, she can continue to do so."

Al looked at me, face pale. _Mum?_ he mouthed. I nodded slowly, then raised a finger to my lips.

"Then what do you suggest?"

"That we continue to watch. Find out her patterns. And those of her children, if you can. They're bound to be just as bad."

"Pardon me," said a new voice, this one low, seductive, and female. "He wants you back."

"Now?" complained the first man.

"We will come, Black Hand." said the second, more calm man. "He has only to summon."

"I will be summoning this time." she said. "The Glorious Ruler is putting another plan in motion. Come."

Suddenly, we heard a weird hybrid of a vacuum noise and a fluttering, then nothing. We stayed pressed against the rocks, waiting with baited breath. Then, I made the motion that we should check and see if they were really gone. We climbed up the rocks, looked down, and paused. At the base of the formation were three piles of robes. I went to jump down and check them out, but Al stopped me. "N-no. Th-they m-might come b-back for them." he said. I knew this was serious, as his stuttering only got worse when he was afraid or angry. I nodded, and we climbed down the rocks with him, then we took off down the beach, back toward the bonfire that was still going. It seemed like we had been dancing hours ago, but in reality it had only been about forty minutes.

"Arty! Al! There you are!" called Mickey, heading over to us with a cup of punch in her hand. "You missed it! Victoire and Teddy had this row in the corner, and Ron and Hermione did this dance and – Well, what's happened to you, then? You look like you've seen a ghost." she said, looking at our pale faces in confusion.

I looked from her to Al, then grabbed her arm and took her to the side. "You'll want to hear this." I said lowly, making sure no one could overhear. I explained the conversation we overheard, and Al filled in the bits I couldn't remember.

"And they were just gone?" she asked in a hushed voice.

"Except their clothes." I said.

"Kinky." she said, crossing her arms. "Who do you think they were?"

"H-harbingers." Al said.

"Al's right, I don't doubt it." I said. "We didn't get a close look at their robes, but I can't think of anyone else who would talk about my mum that way."

"In what way?"

I jumped and whirled around, ready to attack whoever was behind me. I dropped my fist, seeing it was just James and Teddy. "Oh, er... Zabini." I said lamely.

"Er... something we should know about?" James asked, eying my hand warily.

"Nothing, just... Nothing. What's up?" I asked.

"Well... Victoire _wanted _me to tell you to keep your emotions in check when you're around me, but," Teddy shrugged. "I think you already got the memo. So what's Zabini been saying about Em?"

"Nothing important. Just being the git he is." said Mickey. "You know, I'm really tired..." She stretched her arms in a large yawn. "I'm gonna head in."

"Right. Me, too." I said, catching on. "Quite tired. Night."

"T-tell Mum we're g-going in." said Al, following Mickey. I was right behind him when Teddy put a hand on my arm.

"Hey, I'm sorry. About earlier." he said sincerely. "You don't have to go, if..."

To be honest, I'd nearly forgotten about the incident. I'd been too concerned with my mother's safety. "No. No, really, I – I have to go. Er – see you in the morning. Night." I left as quickly as I could, hurrying after the other two.

I didn't go to bed until late that night, as I was up sketching furiously to take my mind off the Harbingers. Something big was being planned. And they were watching Al and I. This couldn't be good.


	6. Chapter 6

The rest of vacation was nowhere near as enjoyable as it had been. I kept wanting to talk to Mickey and Al about the overheard conversation, but there was never time. And even if we had time, there was nothing more to discuss. Except, perhaps, who to tell.

"Sh-should we t-tell Mum?" Al asked.

"_Yes_!" said Mickey. "Tell your mum! It's her what's in danger!"

"No! That's a bad idea!" I said. "She'll only start going after them more. You know what she's like. And, anyway, she knows she's on their list. It's us she'll be concerned about."

"Isn't that okay?" Mickey asked. "She _is_ your mum."

"I told you, she'll only go after the Harbingers with more intensity, and that could get her killed." I pointed out. "We've already lost one parent to this war, we're not losing another. And besides. We'll be at Hogwarts. How much safer can you get, really?"

Mickey still looked unsure. "It was taken over back in the last war, remember? If it was done once, I mean..."

"Look, Al, Mickey," I grabbed one of each of their hands, looking at them desperately. "We _can't_ tell Mum about this. Trust me, it'll only make things worse."

"But what are we supposed to do?" Mickey asked. "We have to tell someone."

"No, we d-"

"Harry." said Al suddenly.

I looked at him. "Come again?"

"W-we can t-tell Harry." he said. "He w-won't tell if we ask."

I thought about that. Harry was cool, but he was Mum's best friend. But maybe we could use that to our advantage. We could tell him not to let Mum in on what we'd heard, and at the same time he'd make sure she stayed safe. It was rather brilliant, now that I thought about it. "Good idea, Al." I told him. "We'll tell him before we leave for school next week."

Mickey didn't look completely satisfied, but she nodded. "That's a good plan. I can handle that."

Another thing about the rest of vacation was that Victoire never said another word to me. However, I was not nearly as upset about that. I seriously didn't need her putting me in my place and discussing the lines between me and her boyfriend. I think she knew I understood that I messed up, and was willing to go a little easier because of that. She had her mother's temper, so that was lucky.

I had been unable to stop sketching. I drew or painted whenever lots of emotions overtook me, almost like a coping mechanism. I didn't like emotional situations, something Mickey and Al knew well. They also knew how badly I didn't want Mum to know about this, so the various drawings were hidden in suitcases and under beds. I had fantastic friends.

It seemed like forever before we finally went home, and by then it was nearly time for school to start. We all went back to our respective houses to repack over the next couple of days, so all I had to worry about was watching what I said around Mum.

It was the last day before we needed to be on the Hogwarts Express when Al walked into my room. "Still p-packing?" he asked, stroking Panacea, who had taken the form of a cat.

"Just a few last-minute things." I told him, putting my brushes into my trunk.

"Teddy sent a letter."

I paused. "Sorry?"

"S-said he was sorry ab-bout the b-bonfire." he explained. "And that you c-could stop avoiding him." He gave me a small smile that was supposed to look like a smirk. "A b-bit thick, inne?"

I shook my head. "I wasn't _intentionally_ avoiding him. Should I send a letter back?"

"Nah. He'll b-be okay. He's a b-big boy, he c-can get over it."

I stared at the topmost items in my trunk, not truly seeing them. "I just want to know who he is." I whispered, more to myself than to Al.

"Well, he's not a P-Potter, and not a W-Weasley-"

"Not Teddy." I interrupted. "The leader of the Harbingers. Who _is_ he? I mean, in the last war, they addressed the bad guy as You-Know-Who, but everyone still knew it was Voldemort. This time... This time, nobody knows who."

"And th-that's the scariest p-part." he said quietly, echoing my thoughts. "Th-that no one knows."

"Because it could be anyone."

I closed my hand around the pendent hanging on my neck. It was a silver sunburst that I'd had since my first Christmas. Mum said Dad had left it as a present before he died. It was the only thing I'd ever received from him. Al had a ring with a silver moon engraved into it. If it hadn't been for the Harbingers and their unknown leader, I probably wouldn't have thought so highly of that necklace. And if it hadn't been for them, I wouldn't even hear that small voice in the back of my mind, saying, _You have a chance. You've heard them, you can do something about it. Fight back!_ If it hadn't been for them, I wouldn't have a current of vengeance mingling with my fear.

"What are you two still doing up?" Mum asked, poking her head into my room. "Al, go to bed. You, too, Arty, it's a big day tomorrow."

"We d-do it every year." Al mumbled as he left with Panacea, shooting me a look that clearly meant he was thinking the same things as me.

"Doesn't matter. It's late. Bed." she said, watching him go. Then she looked at me. "Is everything alright, love?"

I looked at her, innocence written all over my face. "Yeah. Why wouldn't it be?"

"You've seemed very distracted lately." she said, sitting next to me as though to be comforting and only succeeding in making me feel more uncomfortable. "Want to tell me what's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong." I said, not meeting her eyes and fiddling with a paintbrush.

"I know what this is about." she said quietly. I tensed, wondering exactly _what_ she thought she knew about. "I saw Victoire and Teddy arguing that night at the bonfire."

I could have laughed. Why was everyone so concerned about _that_? There were far more important things in the world than a tiff between two teenagers. Possibly caused by a third, but that was debatable.

"Sweetie, you're a very free-spirited person, and while I think that's fantastic, you may want to be a bit more careful about how you interact with others." she continued. "Especially someone dating a child of Fleur Dele – er, Weasley."

"Look, just because Victoire likes drama doesn't mean-" I stopped, realizing I was actually debating this. "Okay, Mum, I'll try."

"That's my girl." she said, kissing my head. "Good night."

"Good night."

She turned off the light, but it was a long time until I went to sleep. It just felt weird that only three of us worried about things that actually mattered anymore.

**. . .**

**Ha! Last line as a reference to how Harry probably felt when the guys in his dormitory discussed football and he was having visions of Voldemort. I'll probably do a lot of parallels to how I believe the Golden Trio felt during the books and how Arty, Mickey, and Al feel in this story.**


	7. Chapter 7

I took a deep breath.

We were in King's Cross on platform Nine and Three Quarters. Harry was standing right there. It was now or never.

After putting my trunk in a compartment, I went up and tapped his shoulder, and he turned to look at me with a slightly surprised look on his face. "What's up?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Can I talk to you?" I asked. "Like, over there?"

His brow furrowed, but he nodded. "What's this about?" he asked.

I waited until we had reached a quiet corner to answer. "It's about the Harbingers."

He looked at me with a small amount of suspicion. "What do you know?"

I took a breath. "When we were on vacation, the night of the bonfire-"

"When Victoire yelled at Teddy?"

"Yes, when Victoire and Teddy had a row!" I snapped impatiently. "Look, this isn't about some stupid fight someone had. Al and I were walking down the beach, and when we got to a pile of rocks, we _heard_ them!"

Harry looked confused. "Teddy and Victoire?"

"No! The Harbingers!" I exclaimed. Normally Harry was very smart and quick-witted. Was he being stupid on purpose?

He blinked, taken aback, then he regained his composure. "Tell me everything."

So I did. I told him every part of the conversation, and of how they'd just vanished afterward, leaving behind their clothes. "They're after Mum. Like, more than we originally thought." I finished.

"Your mum?" Harry said, looking totally blown away. "Arty, they're after _you_. Didn't they mention scoping you and Al out so they could take you both down?"

"Well, yes, but it was mentioned in passing, so-"

"Passing or not, Arty this is serious. Why didn't you tell anyone before?"

"Well, we told Mickey." I said uncomfortably.

He drew a hand across his face. "Arty, what are you thinking? That you can just handle them? No big deal?"

"I was thinking Hogwarts was safe." I told him. "But if it's not, by all means, tell me now."

He got an expression that said I was putting him in an uncomfortable position. "Why did you tell me? Why not your mum? She's an Auror, too, you know."

"Yes, I know that." I said. "I didn't totally disregard what they said about me and Al, you know. I figured if we told Mum, she would just put herself in more danger trying to protect us. But we don't need protecting. From the way the Harbingers were talking that night, this isn't anything new and they've been trying to do it for a while. But... if they want to, you know, renew their efforts... I wanted someone to make sure she was safe."

"Keep her safe and in the dark." Harry muttered, almost laughing. "Two things she hates the most."

"I know, believe me, I know." I said. "But can you _please_ promise me you won't tell her?" Behind me, the whistle went off, warning that the train was about to pull away. I could hear Mum calling me, telling me I would miss it.

"I promise." Harry said. "But, in turn, you need to promise me something."

"What?"

"Ember, come _on_, you need to go!" Mum called.

"One moment, Em." Harry told her. He turned back to me. "Promise me you won't go _looking_ for the Harbingers, or any sort of trouble."

"Harry," I said, almost laughing. "Why would I go _looking_ for them if they want to kill me?"

His mouth turned into a hard line, as though my answer was entirely wrong, but I couldn't dwell on it. I hurriedly said goodbye and jumped on the train, waving out the window as it pulled away.

"Did you tell him?" Mickey asked as we headed to our compartment.

"I told him."

"What did he say?" she asked eagerly.

"He promised he wouldn't tell Mum, but made me promise not to go looking for the Harbingers." I rolled my eyes. "As if that would be a problem."

Mickey nodded with a grin. "You and Al have pulled me into some crazy pranks and things, but you'd never actually be dumb enough to go looking for the biggest bad guys ever."

"Come on, let's get to our compartment." I said as we walked down the train. I may have thought about vengeance from the Harbingers, but I wasn't so stupid as to actually try it. The main thing was to keep people safe, and that's what I was doing. When we got to our compartment, we found Rosie in there, as well as Al. She was talking about lessons, and he was stuttering like mad. "Hello, Rosie." I said, feeling bad that today was an off day for him. Most of the time, around family or people he knew well, Al's stuttering was kept to a minimum. There were some days when he just couldn't control it, though.

"Hey, Arty." she said, seeming not to notice Al's butchered words, or else pretending not to. "I was just going. Lily wants me in a compartment with her."

"See you later, then." said Mickey, stepping out of the way so Rosie could leave.

"Later."

We waited until she'd closed the compartment door behind her, then we turned to Al, who's face was bright red from his destruction of the English language. "Aren't you supposed to be in the Prefect's carriage?" Mickey asked.

"N-not a b-big deal." he said quietly.

I folded my arms. "Want to know how my chat with Harry went?"

He merely nodded, not wanting to talk. Mickey and I sat down in the seats across from him and told him everything we knew.

"W-why would you g-go _looking_ for t-trouble?" he asked.

"That's what I said." I told him. "And Mickey. I think he just went into over-protective Auror mode for a minute."

"It's j-just weird." he said thoughtfully. "L-like he actually exp-pects you to g-go looking."

I shook my head. "That would be dumb. I wouldn't get a chance, anyway. I mean, how would I hunt for Harbingers at Hogwarts?"

"There's a point." Mickey said. "But we've done what we said we'd do. Can we stop worrying about it?"

"That sound like a fantastic plan." I said, leaning back against the seat and slouching in a very unladylike manner. Mum would be so proud. "Anyone up for a game of Exploding Snaps?"

**. . .**

"Harry?" said Ginny, looking at her husband as they drove home. "Is there something bothering you?"

He looked at her out of the corner of his eye, deciding she wouldn't tell anyone. Then he felt weird about thinking that. "Arty and Al overheard Harbingers talking while we were on vacation." he said.

Her brow furrowed. "_Actual_ Harbingers? Where?"

"The night of the bonfire. She said they took a walk and heard the two men talking from behind a big pile of rocks."

"How can she be sure they were Harbingers?" she asked.

"Several reasons, not the least of which being that they were talking about 'taking care' of Ember and that they vanished, leaving their clothes behind." he answered. "She said they only told Mickey about it, and that the only reason she was telling me was so I could protect Em."

"She didn't tell her own mother?" Ginny asked incredulously. It struck her how odd it sounded, coming out of her mouth. "Never mind. I remember being there. She'll never breathe a word of this to Em."

"I know." Harry said. "And that's sort of what I'm worried about."

"Does that put her in more danger?"

"Not exactly..." he said, parking the car outside their house and remaining seated. "It's just... Lately, they've been reminding me of... well, us, to put it plainly. Like they're a combination of all of us from our Hogwarts days."

"What do you mean?" she asked, confused.

"I mean that Arty, Al, and Mickey get into all sorts of weird pranks and things, like Fred and George did, they've stuck together since first year, like Hermione, Ron and I, and Arty and Mickey met on the train to Hogwarts, like Ron met me." He shook his head. "And that's not to mention how Arty's like a copy of her mum."

"Why does that worry you?" Ginny asked, looking amused.

"Don't you remember all the trouble we got into?" he said quietly. "I know our problems started in first year, but theirs are starting now, I can feel it. Arty told me to promise not to tell Ember about what she'd overheard. And I told her to promise not to go looking for the Harbingers. And do you know what she said to me?"

"What?"

"'Why would I go looking for them if they want to kill me?'" he said. "That is the same response I gave to you father when he made me promise the same thing about Sirius in third year. Do you see why I'm concerned?"

"You've been concerned a lot longer than now, haven't you?" she asked, brow furrowed. "Seems like you've thought on this a while."

"I have." he said. "I told you, they remind me of all of us."

"But that's good, right?" she asked as he gathered his keys and things. "If I remember correctly, we were incredible."

"Maybe." he said, getting out of the car. "But I also remember some of us wound up dead."

**. . .**

"Candy from the trolley?" asked the old witch, smiling kindly at us. We stepped up and bought what we could, then she went on her way.

"You know, it's weird." I said, inspecting an Every Flavor Bean. "I've always wondered... Do they have water-flavored beans?"

"Water doesn't have a flavor." Mickey pointed out, curled up in her corner of the seat as she snacked on licorice wands.

"Well, what about paint-flavored?" I asked. "I've never come across one."

"Oh, look here!" someone exclaimed in a mock-excited voice.

I closed my eyes, counted to three, and turned towards the door. "What do you want, Parkinson?"

"I just want to hang out with the coolest kids in school." she said innocently, stepping into the compartment, followed by Cole Zabibi and Vincent Goyle. "Oh, wait... sorry, wrong carriage."

"Sod off, Parkinson." Mickey said.

"Oi! I suggest you keep your dirty mouth shut, Turnley, or I'll hex it off." said Zabini calmly. "You don't want that, now, do you?"

"What about you?" Parkinson asked, turning to Al. "Have you got anything to say? Do you, _retard_?"

"Get out." I said, standing. I was at least six inches shorter than either of them, but I didn't care. No one picks on Al but me.

"No." she said. "I want to hear him talk. Go on. Or are you too stupid?"

"Get _out_!" I said, more forcefully this time as I raised my wand. 

"I wouldn't do that, Malfoy." Zabini said with a smirk, quirking his own wand up. "I've never lost a wizard's duel."

"That's because you've never faced me." I told him, getting as much in his face as I could.

"Don't make me laugh." he sneered.

"Who said I was joking?"

"What's this, then?" asked a familiar voice. "Parkinson... are you _bullying_ people?"

I looked past the people in front of me and saw a mess of blue hair above them. Teddy clicked his tongue a few times. "Now, that's not very polite, is it?" he asked.

"Oh, Lupin." she said. "It's you."

"You sound disappointed."

"Get out, Lupin." said Zabini lazily.

"I will when you do." he responded, leaning against the door frame.

Parkinson took a look at the situation, then decided it wasn't worth it and turned away. "Don't _choke_, retard." she said as a last jab to Al as they left.

"Well... that was unfortunate." Teddy said, watching them go.

"Thanks, Teddy." said Mickey a bit shyly. "They were _really_ getting on my nerves."

"They were getting on mine, too." he said. "He had no right saying your mouth was dirty. I can see it from here, and it looks nice and clean."

She blinked, taken aback by the comment. "Er, thanks. Glad you think so."

"You alright, Al? They didn't hurt you, did they?" he asked, looking the slightest bit angry. Al shook his head, and Teddy nodded. "Good. It would have been worse for them if they had."

"We can handle ourselves, Lupin." I bristled, a bit angry. I had always been the one to step in when Parkinson and Zabini were tormenting us. I wasn't going to just back down and let him be the hero.

He looked at me, suddenly seeming apologetic. "I, er, sorry... I actually came here to apologize. I wasn't sure if you'd gotten my letter..."

"We got it." I assured him. "If you don't mind, I'd like to just forget about he whole thing. It truly wasn't a big deal to begin with, until your girlfriend – Er, let's just forget it."

He nodded. "I can handle that. I'd better return to my lady. I certainly hope I wasn't being too forward by getting rid of those gits." he said sarcastically, walking out the door.

"By, Teddy!" Mickey called.

"Bye, Mickey!" we heard him call back.

I sat down in the seat again, ripping open a Chocolate Frog. In all honesty, if I never had to talk to Teddy again, it would be fantastic. He'd been getting on my nerves more and more as we got older, and I knew it was entirely his fault.

"Who's c-card did you get?" Al asked, speaking for the first time since Parkinson came into the compartment.

I'd actually forgotten about getting Chocolate Frog cards. I pulled it out of the wrapper and checked. "Hm. Harry Potter. Go figure."

"Shouldn't we be getting changed?" Mickey asked. "I mean, we'll be there soon, right? Al, you'll need to step out."

He nodded and stood, but I gasped, making him stop. I had been looking out the window as Mickey talked, and something I'd seen (had I seen it?) startled me.

"What?" he asked, following my gaze.

"I – n-nothing, I didn't-"

"What's wrong?" Mickey asked, also looking out the window.

"It's nothing." I said quickly. "It's... My eyes are probably playing tricks."

"They d-don't normally." Al said. "What d-did you see?"

I looked back out the window. "I just... thought I saw a face."

"That's possible." Mickey said. "I mean, we _are_ going past people's houses."

"No, not like that." I said, shaking my head. "I mean, I saw it right outside the window, pressed against the glass. It was only there for a second." I kept saying "it" like I wasn't sure if it was male or female, but I knew. In that brief second, I'd memorized the features of his face. He was no one I knew, but still terrifying.

"Arty," said Al. "That's n-not possible."

"Yeah. We're going, like, a million kilometers an hour." Mickey said. "There's no way you could have seen that."

"I know!" I said. "I told you, it's probably nothing. Let's just get changed, alright? We'll be there soon." I opened my trunk and began pulling out my black Hogwarts robes, conscious of the looks the other two were giving me, like I was going crazy. Maybe I was.


	8. Chapter 8

**So, I didn't know before, but apparently Luna married someone named Rolf Scamander and not Neville. That being said, I'm here to tell you I don't care. I already made it clear she was married to Neville in the last fic, so, by golly, she's married to him in this one!**

**. . .**

The train stopped and we all got off, thankfully without any more mishaps. I walked with Al and Mickey toward the carriages when we heard a familiar, booming voice.

"Firs' years! Over here! Firs' years!"

"Hagrid!" I called, waving at him. The half-giant towered above the crowd, but he was in no way menacing. He had kind, little black eyes nearly hidden amid his tangled black hair and beard. As far as I knew, the only thing scary about him was his cooking, and possibly his affinity for exotic pets.

"All righ', Arty?" he asked, winking at me. "Gonna be a good year, this one. I can feel it."

"I sure hope so." I muttered, looking at Mickey out of the corner of my eye. "We'll see you inside, yeah?" I called.

"That ye will, Arty. Don' get lost, now." he said with a twinkle in his eye.

"We didn't get _lost_." Mickey said. "We just took a bit of a detour that year. No big deal."

"Ah, well, then, no detours, neither." he said. "I gotta get these firs' years rounded up. See yeh inside!"

We waved goodbye and found a vacant carriage drawn by invisible horses. Lorcan Longbottom, the son of Professor Longbottom, who taught Herbology, had told me they were called Thestrals. I didn't trust that. I liked Lorcan and his twin Lysander, but they had also tried to convince me my head was filled with Nargles back in third year, so I was a bit iffy on their sanity.

But this year, the carriage ride was oddly quiet. Each of us was being eaten up by the thought of Harbingers targeting us, yet we couldn't really talk about it. It was a feeling you couldn't really put into words. To feel less awkward, I took out a pen and started drawing a rough sketch of Hogwarts on the back of my hand as we approached. Just as I finished, the carriage stopped, and we began making our way up the stone steps into the castle. The Great Hall was lit with a thousand floating candles, and the ceiling mirrored the gray, rainy sky outside. The four long House tables were set up, just as I remembered. I saw Louis waving at me from the Ravenclaw table, and my heart did a little flip. Great. The butterflies were back.

"Who d'you reckon that is?" Mickey asked, nudging me as we sat.

I looked where she was pointing and saw a grizzled old man seated at the head table, talking to Professor Flitwick about something. "Probably the new Potions professor. Doorrin _did_ say he was retiring last year."

"He looks... evil." she said, making a face. "Why'd McGonagall let him in?"

"If you haven't noticed, we've got a strange assortment of professors here at Hogwarts." I told her. "I mean, have you _met_ Trelawney?"

"No, _she's_ batty." she pointed out. "This guy... I don't know, it's like his aura is off, or something."

I snorted. "You're beginning to sound like me."

"Hush, you two." said Molly Weasley, Uncle Percy's daughter. She was a Prefect, and wouldn't let anyone forget it. Al was a Prefect, too, but he kept it so quiet I didn't even think Grandma knew. "The Sorting is starting."

We quieted, but Mickey and I still made soft bets on who would go to what House. We bet Every-Flavor Beans, so it wasn't too bad. Lily Potter was sorted, and she ended up being in Gryffindor, much to Rosie's delight. I made ten beans off of that one.

Before the food appeared on the table (courtesy of the adorable House Elves in the basement), but after the first years had sat down, Professor McGonagall stood. "Welcome to Hogwarts!" she called, spreading her arms in an all-encompassing gesture. "Just a few rules before we eat. I'd like to remind everyone that the forest is off limits to _everyone_. Quidditch tryouts will be held, once again, two weeks after the start of term.

"There are also two additional announcements this year." she continued. "First, Divination will be taught in the South Tower this year. Secondly, I would like to introduce Professor Alamond as our new Potions master. Let's give him a warm welcome, shall we?"

The applause was a bit forced, if only because of how terrifying he looked. His wrinkled face was square, his jaw set. He was stooped even when he sat, so his chin hovered only a few inches above the table. His clothes were obviously ancient, but not terribly ratty, and his thin, white hair fell past his shoulders. The most disconcerting part about him was his eyes. They were deep green, but were always narrowed, as though in suspicion mingled with hatred. It was as though he'd like to curse the lot of us then and there.

"Now that the announcements are done, let us eat!" Professor McGonagall called, clapping her hands twice. Food appeared up and down the long House tables, and, for a moment, the scary professor was forgotten.

"Oi! Arty!" James called a few seats down. "What's this about Divination?"

"Why are you asking me?" I shot back.

"You take the bloody class."

"So do you!"

"Oh, _right_! That's the one I always sleep in! So, anyway, what's with the change?" he inquired.

I rolled my eyes. "Yes, because she'd_ really_ tell us about switching a year before it happened." We both sort of stopped, then, realizing how odd the statement had been seeing as it was about a Divination teacher. Then he grinned.

"You _have_ to ask her about it! Five Sickles says she'll tell you her _third eye _was clouded."

"Her _inner_ eye." I laughed. "Well, if it comes to bets, then I'll put five Sickles down on her telling me the fates hadn't yet decided before term ended."

"I'll hold you to that."

"I'm sure you will."

"B-but that's not _allowed_!" Molly spluttered, looking between James and I. "You can't do that!"

"Oh, is that wrong?" James asked, raising his eyebrows as he feigned innocence. "Oh, Arty, nevermind. We'll just owe each other Chocolate Frogs and call it a deal."

I could barely contain my laughter. His face was just too good.

"Seriously, though." said Mickey. "What'dya think happened to the North Tower?"

"Fire?" Al suggested.

"Are they wizards or are they Muggles, Al? They would have taken care of a fire." I said.

"Fiendfyre?"

I paused. "Fiendfyre... How did you even remember that?"

"What's Fiendfyre?" Mickey asked, looking between us.

"It's magical fire, but the bad kind." I said. "It's uncontrollable, a sort of, 'cast at your own risk' thing. But Mum only mentioned it once, when she was talking about a Slytherin she knew when she went to Hogwarts who died from his own Fiendfyre."

"That's batty!" she exclaimed. "Who'd cast a dodgy spell like that?"

"S-someone who wanted t-to kill Harry P-Potter." Al said.

"He was there, too?" she asked.

"Mum, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and I think our dad." I said. "If Fiendfyre is what put the North Tower out of commission, who knows what got in here over the summer."

"And m-might have st-stayed." Al said darkly.

**. . .**

**Sorry for the short chapter! I just didn't know where else to go with this!**

**Also, a couple things to point out. I originally wrote that Divination class would be moved to the North Tower, but then I took the initiative to actually look that up and saw that Divination is normally taught in Trelawney's office _in the North Tower_. I'm only telling you this because of the hilarious image I got of McGonagall trolling all the students. :D**

**Also, the South Tower is never mentioned anywhere. I don't even know if it exists. So, in the real Potterverse outside of my mind, all of the students are simply floating in space as they read tea leaves. Just food for thought. **


	9. Chapter 9

**Sorry I haven't been updating, but, admit it, you knew it was gonna happen. But I've been working on an original story the past few days, and, believe me, if you knew what was in it, you wouldn't be surprised at my distraction. I'll try and crank out another chapter every week or so, but scholarships are coming up and I am going to DIE! So... Yeah, updates might get put on hold.**

**. . .**

Lila Heatherbee tended a magic shop in Hogsmeade. It wasn't a normal magic shop. All of her wares were either very old, or dealt with very old practices. None of them evil, of course, but still very old. She like her way of life, living in the shop, learning about ancient traditions. It was who she had always been meant to be.

"Salem!" she called. "Get down from there! Those aren't treats!"

A black cat jumped down from a set of shelves and padded over to her, looking expectant.

"Now you've done it. You've gone and said the 't' word." said a voice from the shadows.

"Oh, don't start with me, Harmon." she said, picking up the cat. "You're just jealous because you can't eat."

A form in the shape of a man detached itself from the corner almost lazily. "Yes, well, a lack of stomach will do that to you."

"Don't be so bitter. I might just get generous and turn out all the lights later." she called from the back room.

"You'd do that for me? I'm touched, truly." Harmon said.

The bell attached to the front door jingled as someone entered. Lila reemerged from the back room to see her new customer. "Can I help you, sir?"

The man looked around her shop for a moment, seeming to be very interested. "Yes. I saw your sign out front. You do fortune telling, yes?"

She walked around the counter slowly, almost uncertainly. "It also says 'not recommended' underneath, so..."

"Does that imply you can't do it?" he asked pointedly.

"No, I can." she assured him. "It's just that... well, sometimes it's dangerous, knowing your future."

"I just need some things double-checked, that's all." he said. "If you want, I'll even let you choose the medium with which you foretell my future."

She looked at him warily. "I'll read your palm."

He held out his hand cooperatively, looking as expectant as Salem had moments before. After a moment and minor shuffling of the feet, Lila took his hand, closed her eyes, and began to trace the lines in his palm. "Here, it says you will attain a goal, though I'm not sure if it's a main one or only secondary. This says you will overcome your next battle and succeed... But here it says you'll lose, and it looks often, and here you'll have something very dear torn from you, and-"

The man ripped his hand away. "That's enough. We're done here."

"But I'm not finished." she protested, holding her hand as though scalded. "It's dangerous to-"

"I said we're done." he said with finality, throwing a few Sickles onto the counter. "Good day."

She watched him go, breathing quickened slightly. The man had been scary, to say the least. His future was even scarier.

"Well, that was rather rude." said Harmon, arms crossed as he watched the man walk away from the shop. "I hope you got your money's worth."

"It's not the money I care about." Lila said, looking at her hand as though expecting to see some form of injury or proof of the man's idiocy. "You don't just end a reading in the middle and leave. Who knows what you could have missed?"

"With a man like that, I'm sure I don't care." he said. "And you shouldn't, either."

"No, I should." she contradicted as Salem came out and began following her around. "It's my _job_. If it's not done right, people can get hurt. I just wish I knew who he was. His palm wasn't exactly full of peace and happiness."

"Good thing you didn't tell _him_ that." Harmon said. "Perhaps he's one of those shady characters you get sometimes."

"Quite like you to call someone shady, Harmon." Lila said pointedly, raising an eyebrow.

"Figure of speech, Lila." he said as though wounded. He raised an eyebrow as he watched her pull a wrapped sphere out of a cupboard. "What are you doing?"

"I'm going to look into his future." she said, setting the crystal ball on its stand. "I want to know why he was so... Well, I'm not sure exactly. I just know that I want to know."

"Is that wise? You yourself said that fortune telling is a dangerous art. It should not be taken lightly." Harmen pointed out.

"I _know_ that, Harmon." she said irritatedly. "But sometimes the people are more dangerous than the consequences of knowing the future." At a look from the ghost, she added, "It's happened before."

"Fine. Not like I can do anything about it, anyway. Except, perhaps, glide through you in annoyance." he sniffed.

"Please don't do that, you'll ruin my concentration." she said, staring into the depths of the crystal. "Okay, then. _You draw your power from light of the moon. Now show me the destiny of whomever I choose._"

Harmon watched her, feeling as though this wasn't the best idea. Her brow furrowed and she looked confused. "What is it?" he asked.

"Something's wrong." she told him, shaking her head. "It's foggy. I can only see blurry images."

"Perhaps it's broken."

"No, I don't think so." she said, looking up. "I think maybe our mystery man is more than he seemed."

"Could he be one of those Dark Wizards roaming around? The Harbingers?" he asked.

"More than likely." she said, wrapping the ball back up in its cloth. "I mean, they can vanish out of thin air. What's to stop them from keeping a scrying person away?"

"If that was their intent, then it was poor judgment on his part to have his palm read." Harmon admonished. "Now we know he's connected to something."

"Maybe they knew it didn't matter." she said. "The Harbingers aren't easily caught. I know of three who have been in the sixteen years they've been up and about. They could walk into the Ministry and still escape. I'm telling you, Harmon, no good will come of this."

"When does it ever?" he asked rhetorically.

**. . .**

**Arty**

I awoke the next morning to a pillow in the face. "Mornin', lovely." called Mickey. "First day of school!"

"Sod off, Mick." I groaned, rolling over.

"Nope. Today's your chance to get five Sickles off James." she said, pulling her robes on.

I grinned. "Ah. This should be fun. Wonder what sort of state Trelawney's in. Remember fourth year, when she freaked out because someone moved around the furniture in her classroom?"

"Best day of term, that was." she said, grinning. "Come on, let's get to breakfast."

I finished changing and we headed down to the common room together, me still trying to get my major bedhead under control. "Morning, Al." I yawned.

"Morning, Arty." he said sleepily. He joined Mickey and I as we headed to the Great Hall for breakfast. We were later than usual, so the mail owls were flying in as we sat down. Al caught the _Prophet _as it sailed over his head and snapped it open as we began eating.

"Anything good?" I asked, crunching my bacon.

"No." he said, scanning the articles. "Just more rub-bish about K-Kingsley."

"No kidding." Mickey said. "No Harbinger attacks or anything?"

"Th-there was a sighting in Hogsmeade, b-but nothing happened." he said. "P-probably nothing."

"If the article is less than three paragraphs and it's down the side of the page, nothing is probably an overstatement." I said. "No doubt someone saw a hooded figure and panicked. When did it happen?"

"Last night."

"See? If it had been real, I'm sure alarms of some kind would have gone off." I said casually. "Al, look at your schedule. I want to know when you have Ancient Runes."

The rest of the day went by quickly and quietly, which was good. I was saving my wit for Divination, which was just after lunch. Mickey, Al, and I trooped up the stairs in the South Tower (which was a God-awful distance from the Great Hall. Add in the stairs and I'd be dropping ten pounds by the end of the year) and waited with the others for the trap door in the ceiling to open. It did, as though of its own accord, and we all mounted the rope ladder into the classroom. I raised an eyebrow upon entry. Trelawney had wasted no time in redecorating to make this place look _exactly_ like her old classroom. The three of us shared looks, then settled on a couple squishy poofs in the middle of the room.

"Welcome! Welcome, class!" Professor Trelawney announced, peering at everyone through her gigantic glasses. "I must apologize for the inconvenience of this tower, but it will have to do for this year."

I raised my hand. "Er, Professor? I was wondering why you didn't foretell this happening."

She looked at me like she'd just noticed I was there. "My dear, if I could foretell everything happenstance in this school, I would have no time to be in the physical realm."

I blinked and looked over at James, who also seemed a bit miffed. That had actually been a halfway plausible answer.

"This year, we will be starting on the crystal ball." she announced. "As you may have guessed by looking at the tables before you. Please open your textbooks to page twelve to see how to begin."

There was the sound of rustling paper, then that of quiet talking as people snickered about the phrase "crystal balls".

"What do we do?" Mickey asked.

"Stare into it, I suppose." I said, checking out the smooth surface. I felt ridiculous. The thing was totally blank, like the inanimate object it probably was. If anyone got something out of one of these, it would be a miracle.

"You g-go first." Al said, sliding the ball over to me.

I sighed, then stared at it. Nothing happened. "Am I supposed to say something?"

"The book doesn't say to."

"I will anyway." I said. "Er... _O, crystal ball, please don't be a bore, show me what there is in store._"

Again, nothing happened. Unless you count Mickey and Al laughing at me. "'O, crystal ball, please don't be a bore'!" Mickey giggled.

"Oh, shut up." I said. Then something caught my eye. "It's broken, anyway. Look, there's a crack in it."

"Where?" she asked as she and Al bent for a closer look.

"Here, along the top." I said, tracing the hairline fracture with my finger. "Professor! I think ours is broken!"

Instantly, Trewlawney was sweeping over to us. "What seems to be the problem, my dears?"

"There's a crack in it. Look." I said, holding it up for her to see.

She examined it. "A crack like this shouldn't stop it from..." She trailed off as the crack suddenly started growing, racing down the side of the ball until, without warning, the entire the shattered into crystal powder.

The entire class stopped what they were doing to look. "What was that?" I exclaimed, holding out my arms where small cuts had appeared. They didn't hurt a lot. I was more concerned with why the ball had shattered. "I wasn't holding it that tightly." I looked at Trelawney, who was staring at me in terror. "Oh, you've got to be kidding."

"It is a sign!" she proclaimed. "A sign of danger and – and... A sign of death." she finished in a hushed voice.

"Great. Thanks for the help. I'm going to the Hospital Wing. Mickey, you're coming with me."

Mickey immediately stood and grabbed my books, then we headed out of the classroom. "Do you really think that was a sign of death?" she asked.

"Please. She predicts my death every year. Last year she even started crying." I said dryly. "She's just crazy."

"Alright, but I just want to say this. Tea leaves are one thing, Arty, but exploding crystal balls are something else."

**. . .**

**Exploding crystal balls. Think about it.**


	10. Chapter 10

My time in the Hospital Wing had me skipping the rest of Divination. Not that I minded, but the next class Mickey and I had was Potions with the creepy Professor Alamond.

"You think he's batty like Trelawney?" Mickey asked.

"I think if he was that off his rocker, we'd have noticed by now." I said. "But there is something off about him. Like maybe he knows something he shouldn't."

"Oh, you got that feeling, too?" she asked, shivering as we entered the dungeons. "I thought it was just me."

The Gryffindors were gathered outside Alamond's dungeon when we arrived, waiting for the door to open. From what I could hear of their conversation, they were discussing the same things as Mickey and I.

"You okay?" Al asked, followed by James as he walked up.

"Fine." I said flatly. "Nothing Madame Pomfrey couldn't fix. Exploding crystal balls, honestly..."

"She sort of lost it after you two left." James said. "Made everyone put the balls back and we started doing palm readings. Like she was afraid of them or something."

"It _exploded_, James. I'd be on edge, too." Mickey said.

"Fair point, fair point." he acknowledged.

"Oh, I heard about that." said Zabini, strolling up. I narrowed my eyes. Potions with the Slytherins was worse than Divination, hands down. "Heard how you just destroyed that innocent little ball."

"You know what I did to a crystal ball, think of what I can do to your-"

"Look, the door's opening." James said quickly, cutting me off. "This should be fun."

We filed into the classroom, wondering what this new teacher would be like. The last one had been nice, but also kind of crazy. We couldn't blame him, since he spent most of his time in a dungeon, but we weren't exactly crushed when he said he was going to retire.

"Take your seats, everyone!" said a young guy at the front of the room. He had thick brown hair, a kind face, and big brown eyes, and seemed to be just out of finishing school. He was definitely _not_ Professor Alamond.

"Who's that?" Al whispered to me.

"Dunno. Maybe Alamond croaked before they could get the term started." I suggested.

"Git out 'cher books."

Everyone's head snapped to the front of the room, where Alamond came in from the storage closet, stumping along with a cane. He sat in a chair in front of us, then just sort of sat there and stared us down.

After a moment, the young guy spoke again. "Yes, well... I'm Professor Hallwood, assistant to Professor Alamond. He'll give you the directions, and I'll see to it that they're carried out."

"So it's going to be a team effort this year." Mickey whispered.

"You! In the back!" Alamond suddenly snapped, pointing at her. "Since yeh feel so talkative, explain teh me what the purpose of a Druid's Draft is."

Her eyes widened. "I – I didn't mean to offend-"

"Answer the question!"

She sucked in a breath and hurriedly began thinking about the potion. I was silently urging her on, not that I knew what a Druid's Draft did, or even that it actually existed.

"Does it... Does it help connect someone to nature?" she asked shakily.

The corner of his mouth quirked up in what we could only hope was a smile. It was still a bit creepy. The man had a gift for intimidating people. "Close, very close. Write this down, people; a Druid's Draft is used to connect someone to nature, but specifically for the purpose of controlling it. If someone drinks it, they can automatically make trees and underbrush do their bidding."

"What's the draw?" Zabini asked.

"Eh?" Alamond replied.

"Why bother?" he clarified. "Why use _trees_?"

"Oh, don't underestimate the trees, boy." Alamond said warningly. "If yeh've ever looked at that forest outside the castle, yeh'd know what I mean. Sometimes they don't even need help, and can move on their own."

"But that's a myth." Roxanne Weasley said. "They don't actually move."

The professor turned his stern gaze to her. "Are yeh a witch or not, lass? Who're you teh say somethin's impossible, eh?"

"Never dismiss anything." Al and I muttered at the same time. That was Mum's motto. She said it kept her alive in the field, so we went with it.

"For today, yeh'll each try teh make a Druid's Draft." Alamond said. "Now, I don't expect yeh teh get it right on the first try, but yeh should get close. Go on, get started."

"Sort of a grouchy old man, isn't he?" Mickey asked under her breath.

"Grouchy, but brilliant." Professor Hallwood said, startling us. "Don't worry, he's been called worse and lived. I think he might even see grouchy as a compliment. Means he's succeeded in life." he added quietly.

We laughed, and he walked away to check on the Slytherins. "Now, see, him... He's cool." Mickey decided. "I like him."

"He's nice." I agreed. "Wonder why they're working together."

"He needs help." Al said. "A-Alamond, I mean. He's old, and c-can't do things l-like he used to. Hallwood's sort of his l-living assistant."

"Don't let Alamond hear you say that." Mickey mumbled. "He'll probably hex your face off."

"Can we please move on with this potion?" I asked. "I'd like to be in good favor with this Alamond. Something tells me he'd be awful on any side but our own."

We sat in mostly silence for a moment while we carried out the directions. The potion was difficult, requiring a lot of concentration on the details. One wrong stir and we'd have to throw the whole thing out.

"Wait a moment." Mickey said, looking at the directions with narrowed eyes. "Why do we need to add frog legs?"

"Because it says so?" I said tiredly, pushing my hair out of my face. "Why?"

"Powdered moonstone would work a lot better." she said. "I mean, what with the idea being able to control nature and all."

"Look at you." I said bemusedly as she added the moonstone. "Who knew you were such a Potions nerd."

"Sod off." she muttered, though she was grinning. Soon after, the draft turned a deep emerald color, just like the book said. She bottled it up and walked it to the front of the classroom, looking nervous. I was a bit surprised. I'd never seen Mickey want to impress a teacher so badly.

"Done?" Alamond grunted, peering at the vile in her hand.

"Yes, sir." she said quietly.

He nodded and took the glass, examining it closely through his spectacles. His brow furrowed. "And it _was_ ye who made this, eh, Miss..."

"Turnley." she said quickly. "And, erm, yes. Arty and Al helped. The Malfoy twins, over there."

He narrowed his eyes and looked at us, then gestured with a gnarled hand for us to approach. Nervously, we did, wondering if we were in trouble for something.

"You all helped make this, did yeh?" he asked. We nodded. The entire room was now silent as the students watched. "All by yourselves?" Again, we nodded. Why didn't he believe us? I looked at Mickey, giving a slight shake of the head. She returned with a miniscule shrug, looking equally confused.

Suddenly, Alamond broke into a grin. Or, what could be called a grin. He handed Mickey the vile and said, "Well done. This is _exactly_ how a Druid's Draft should look. You three must have some kind o' gift. Keep this. And five points to Gryffindor for each of yeh."

We looked at each other in surprise, then returned to our seats. "Bloody hell, Mick." I murmured. "You're a bleedin' genius. Where'd you learn to make potions like that?"

"Oh, I just woke up this morning and decided to be naturally better than everyone." she said easily, placing the Druid's Draft carefully in her bag. "Not much of a story, really."

"Whatever it is, I hope it sticks around. Al _might_ actually get a passing grade this year." I teased, elbowing my brother.

"Oi!" he said indignantly, though he was smiling.


	11. Chapter 11

"Please?"

"No."

"I'll buy you a new paint set!"

"The lady said no." said Louis pointedly.

"But we _need_ you." Teddy whined.

"I told you, I'm no good with sports." I reminded him. "Seriously, I can't be your only option."

"Not the only one, no, but you _are_ the best." he said. "You've got a great eye for detail. Honestly, you should be honored that we keep asking you."

It was a rainy Saturday, and we were in the Great Hall. I had been sketching, with Louis watching me, when Teddy came up and started pestering me _again_ about being Seeker for our Quidditch team.

"Why do you keep asking?" Louis asked. "She's turned you down _every single time_."

"I'm a persistent man." he said, flashing a smirk. "But seriously, will you please join the team?"

"All your begging is getting you is an irritated artist who just wants a quiet place to work." I said.

"Maybe if you said yes, I'd quit begging." he pointed out.

"That's it. I'm done." I said, snapping my sketchbook shut and standing. "I'm going to go somewhere you can't bother me."

"No – Arty, don't leave-"

"Arty, wait." Louis said. "You don't have to go, he'll leave."

"Oi! I didn't say that-"

"Okay! Enough!" I exclaimed. "_Fine_. I'll go to your stupid practice. Happy?"

"Inordinately."

"Good. Now leave me _alone_."

**. . .**

I strode onto the Quidditch field with my traditional cocky swagger and broomstick. It was an older Starchaser model, but it would do. Already, most of the team was up in the air, flying around and around the goal hoops. Suddenly, one dot halted, then turned and came whizzing towards me. "You came!" Teddy exclaimed, looking thoroughly excited.

"Yes," I said as though it were obvious. "I did say I would."

"Oh, brilliant!" said James, dismounting and jogging towards me. He blew his whistle and the rest of the team came down, most waving at me and flashing smiles. "Right then. As most of you already know, this is Arty. She's going to be here at practice tonight and we'll see if she can be our new Seeker."

"What do I have to do?" I asked.

James pulled a crate over to where we were standing. "This... is the Golden Snitch." he said, pulling it out. "You have to catch it... we'll say six times. If you get it in a reasonable amount of time all six tries, you're on the team. Easy enough?"

I shrugged. "Can't see how it can get complicated."

"Right." he agreed. "Oh, and we'll be having a practice match while you do that."

"Still doesn't seem too hard." I said.

"We'll see. Alright, everybody, up!" he called, blowing his whistle. The team rose into the air, and, after a moment, I joined them. They started their game, and I watched them whiz around for a moment. Teddy was a Beater with James, who was captain. They were pretty damn good at it, too. Donald McConnaughy, Julie Drews, and Oswald Jones were the three Chasers, and Erik Lynn was our Keeper. I kept track of them for a moment, making sure I knew what went on in the game, when a gold flash at the edge of my vision caught my eye. I went for it, pushing my broom as fast as it could go, but the Snitch got away. I moved higher, circling the field and this time searching closely for the tiny gold ball. There, by Julie's elbow. Smoothly as I could, I dove down, rolled to the left, and snagged the Snitch, and only just bumped her arm as I went by. "Got it!" I called, holding it up.

"Impressive." James said, flying up to me. "Let's see you do it again."

The other five times proceeded in much the same fashion. There was a scary moment when a Bludger nearly took my head off while I was focused on the Snitch, but James managed to beat it back for me. All in all, I felt pretty proud of myself, despite not wanting to be there in the first place.

"Brilliant job." James said after we'd landed. "I'd say you made the team."

"Great. When's the next practice?" I asked.

"Friday."

"I'll be there." I promised, turning back towards the castle.

"Bye, Arty!" Julie called. She seemed excited to have me on the team, and I supposed that made sense. Before, she was the only girl. It had to get tiring after hearing about picking up girls and other manly things that really aren't quite so manly all the time.

"Bye, Julie! See you 'round!" I called back.

**. . .**

When I walked into the common room, I instantly knew something was wrong. Mickey and Al were at a table in the corner, talking in low voices. I went over to them, brow furrowed. "What's wrong?"

Al looked at me, face pale, and handed me the evening issue of the _Daily_ _Prophet_. I took it and read the article he pointed to.

**Attack on Aurors**

Just last night, around twenty-five Harbingers launched an attack on

a group of five Aurors. Among the Aurors were Harry Potter, Ember

Malfoy, Ron Weasley, Ben Hushluck, and Andrew Emerson. The

Dark wizards were eventually beaten back, but Emerson was killed in

the struggle. A funeral for him will be held on (see page 18)

I blinked back the tears forming in my eyes and sat down hard on one of the chairs. Andy had been another friend of ours. But he'd survived this long, we thought he'd make it through to the end.

"Your mum sent this." Mickey said, handing over a folded piece of paper. I took and and quickly read her messy handwriting. It was a simple note saying that she was okay and to not worry about her. She must have been in a rush, since it was so short and hurriedly written.

"I-I wanted to ask her if w-we could go to the f-f-funeral."Al said quietly. "I'm sending an o-owl after dinner."

I just nodded. "Maybe we should just stop getting attached to people." I said.

"Don't think like that." Mickey said. "We can get through this, truly. Erm... How was practice?"

"I'm going to bed." I said, standing and breezing off to my room.

**. . .**

**I know what you're thinking.**

"**WHAT IS THIS BS? YOU LEAVE US FOR MONTHS ON END AND GIVE US THIS MEASLEY LITTLE CHAPTER?"**

**Something like that, anyway.**

**I apologize. I can't figure out what should happen in the immediate future for this story, and so I'm having trouble keeping focused. Anyone who wants to shout out ideas, feel free.**


	12. Chapter 12

It was late, the day before the first Hogsmeade trip of the year. I was restless and couldn't sleep for the life of me. Quietly, I slipped out of bed, forgoing the shoes, since socks were quieter, grabbed my art supplies, and left Gryffindor Tower in search of a place to draw. I supposed I could have done so in the common room, but I felt a bit on the rebellious side.

Wearily, I padded through the halls, not making a sound. My heart nearly stopped when I saw Peeves the Poltergeist floating around, but I managed to avoid him without much incident. I kept walking until I noticed a door that I was quite sure had never been there before. I stared at it for a good minute before deciding it was real, not a trick door like the castle enjoys producing for unwary students. Cautiously, I turned the handle and opened it.

I raised my eyebrows at the room beyond. There was gray, wall-to-wall carpeting, windowless walls, and easels and lamps every few feet. Some cans of paint were piled against one wall, and there was an entire station just for colored pencils and brushes. "No way," I whispered, looking around. How could I have not discovered this room before? This wonderful, beautiful room that had everything one could possibly want? Grinning my head off, I stepped inside.

**. . .**

"I'm not kidding, Mickey, it was the most incredible thing I've ever seen!" I insisted. "Al, you believe me, right?"

"I think you're batty." she said as we walked through Hogsmeade. "It's obvious you were dreaming."

"Dreaming? Mickey, I wouldn't make this up!" I said, mock-offended. "You just wait, I'll bring you there tomorrow."

"I b-believe you." Al said. "Hogw-warts is weird."

"Right you are, Al. Oh, what's this, then?" I said, pausing to look at a store as we passed. "_Lila's Old-Fashioned Magic Shoppe_."

"Sounds like rubbish to me." Mickey said.

"It could be fun! And look, she does fortune telling!" I said, grabbing her arm. "That should be a laugh, at the very least."

"T-Trelwaney's sister." Al joked.

"Possibility. Let's look." I said as we walked through the door. A little bell went off as we entered, and we noticed the place was fairly empty, save for the shelves of really old magical items. It looked more like a medieval witch's shop than anything modern. In fact, I was fairly sure I was looking at a book of incantations and chants. The really long spells no one uses anymore because they've all been shortened. Chants were really only ever used for incredibly complicated Dark Arts.

"Look," said Al, already spotting something. "Is that a g-genie lamp?"

"It might be, to the right touch."

We looked up to see a tall, pretty young woman with long, curly brown hair. She had it tied back with a colorful scarf and wore a loose, blue shirt with jeans. The amount of jewelry she wore was equal to that of my own, though she was much taller and didn't have any freckles. "Lila Heatherbee." she said. "What can I do for you?"

"You can read fortunes?" Mickey asked, tilting her head toward the sign out front.

"Several different ways, actually." she said. "There's palm reading, which is the pretty basic, general stuff, Tarot cards, which are really just for fun unless you're a mystic, tea leaves, which are kind of faulty, since omens can actually be interpreted in different ways, and crystal ball, which is pretty specific and probably your best bet if you really have to know."

"Ugh," I grunted. "No thanks. I've had enough of crystal balls."

"That's probably for the best, anyway. Knowing your future is very dangerous." she said solemnly. "Just out of curiosity, did you have a bad experience with crystal balls?"

"In Trelawney's class." Mickey said.

Lila nodded in understanding. "Oh. She _is_ a Seer, but... rarely. She's been known to hit a couple prophecies on the nose, but the rest is just mumbo-jumbo. In her defense, it's rather hard to See until you've got the knack of it."

"Yeah, her crystals are shotty, too." I said. "Mine exploded on me."

This caused her brow to furrow. "Exploded? How?"

"There was this l-long crack," Al said, positioning his hands like he was holding a ball. "And it got b-bigger."

"Then it just exploded." I finished. "Into a million razer-sharp pieces."

"That's not shotty crystal." Lila said, going over to one of her shelves. "At least, _I've _never heard of a broken ball. It's only talked about jokingly. Did you happen to See anything in the ball before it burst?"

"No." I said, surprised she was taking this seriously. "Well, besides the crack."

"Hm. Thought as much. Too inexperienced." she muttered, pulling a crystal ball down from the shelf. "I would have liked to have gotten a look at it beforehand. Oh, well. Here, see what happens with this." She handed me the ball, but I hesitated.

"Er, yeah, last time I tried that, I was sent to the Hospital Wing." I informed her.

"Don't worry, I can heal you." she said. "And if it breaks, you'll be free of charge."

"I still don't want to." I said.

She pressed her lips together and looked down at the ball. "Well... I think that's for the best. The breaking ball doesn't sound quite right to me, so I'll use mine to look into your future." She paused on her way to a covered table. "With your permission, that is."

I shrugged. "Er... yeah, I suppose it's alright."

"I'm sorry. It's _extremely_ rude to look into someone's future without asking." she said, uncovering her crystal ball.

"Didn't stop you before." said a disembodied voice, making us jump. The figure of a man dressed in old, very classy clothes materialized next to Lila.

"Yes, well, _before_ we had a very suspicious character in our shop." she said.

"They aren't suspicious?" he sniffed, glancing at us.

"Erm... who is that?" Mickey asked, looking weirded out. I was, too. I was used to the Hogwarts ghosts, but I'd never seen ghosts anywhere else.

"This is Harmon." Lila said distractedly. "He's my resident ghost. Lives in the walls. Okay, I think we're ready. Could you sit across from me here? It's better if you're closer."

Cautiously, I sat, though as far as I could from Harmon. His disapproving stare freaked me out a little. Lila stared intensely into the ball and said, "_Crystal, crystal, of the ball, show me what I want to know most of all_."

"Told you you had to say something." I murmured to Al and Mickey.

Lila's eyebrows came together and she looked worried. "This is bad... Actually, this is really bad. Who are you?"

"Arty Malfoy." I said. "Why? What do you see?"

"Well, I'd rather not say." she said, leaning back in her chair. "But I know someone hates you. Strongly. And they're looking for you."

I snorted. "_That's_ not a surprise." I said. "I already figured that bit out, and planned for it. I'll be fine."

"No, Arty, you misunderstand." she said, leaning closer. "If you already prepared for it, I wouldn't have seen it in the crystal."

I stared at her, my own eyebrows coming together. What exactly had she seen in that crystal? And what did it have to do with mine exploding during class?

"Erm, Lila? Not to be a bother, but I do believe your cat is getting into the bottled newts again." Harmon said in a bored voice as though none of this particularly mattered to him.

"Oh, bugger! Salem, get down!" Lila cried, jumping up and rushing over to rescue a black cat from the shelves. He meowed indignantly as she pulled him down and carried him back to her chair. "Sorry about that. He just thinks he owns the place. You know how cats are."

"I have a c-cat." Al said. "S-sort of."

"Sort of?" Lila asked.

"She's a shapeshifter." Mickey said. "She can only turn into things with fur, though, so she likes to be a cat."

"Oh? That sounds terribly interesting. What's her name?" Lila asked.

"Panacea." Al said.

"Ah, goddess of healing. You like that sort of thing?" she asked. He nodded and she smiled. "I could tell by your caduceus. I have a few very old recipes for remedies if you want."

"That w-would be cool." he said with a smile.

"Hey, aren't we going to hit the Three Broomsticks before we leave Hogsmeade?" Mickey asked.

"Yeah, we should get going." I said, wanting to leave the shop. The whole prophecy thing was making me anxious, and I wanted to get as far as possible from any crystal balls. We stood, said goodbye to Lila Heatherbee, and Mickey and Al had exited when Lila stopped me.

"That wasn't mystical mumbo-jumbo when I said I saw bad stuff in the crystal." she said earnestly. "Be wary. You are going to meet Harbingers, they're not going to like you very much, and it is very possible that you could die."

I looked at her. "What should I do?" I asked.

"Whatever you can to prepare yourself." she advised. "Study hard. It may seem tedious, but you'll need every bit of it."

I nodded. "Okay. And, erm... thanks for warning me." I said. "I know I was skeptical earlier, but you seem like you know what you're doing."

"Don't mention it. Go on, your friends are waiting."

I left the store, feeling inexplicably shaky. If Lila had been right about anything today, it would be that knowing one's future is bad.

**. . .**

Lila watched the three teens leave, arms folded and worry lines creasing her forehead. Something spectacular was going to happen to them, if only she knew what. But no, then again, she didn't want to know.

"I noticed you sugar-coated that girl's fortune." said Harmon, for once looking concerned. "Didn't you swear off doing that after last time?"

"I got the point across." she said, hugging herself.

"Yes, but how well? You said 'very possible that you will die', not 'almost certain'."

"She understands, Harmon." Lila snapped, turning and heading to the back room. "No need to go scaring her. Making her wary should be enough."

Harmon continued to watch the windows as his master left, seeming almost regretful. "We can only hope."

**. . .**

**I really suck ass at this whole updating game.**


	13. Chapter 13

**I AM MORON!  
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**Just realized I had Louis sitting in the Gryffindor common room when he's not even a Gryffindor. -_- See, this is why we go back and re-read things. I'll just go change that.**

**. . .**

I woke up early the next Saturday, feeling my heart beat faster than normal as I got ready.

"You nervous?" Mickey asked as we walked to the Great Hall.

"Hell no."

"You're lying."

"So?"

She just smiled and sat next to me. "What are you nervous for? From what I hear, you're brilliant on the field."

"Still, it's the first game." I said, biting into a piece of toast. "Instead of watching the players, this time I'll be the one getting watched."

"I'd b-be nervous, too." Al said. "Knock 'em o-out of the air, Arty."

"Wotcher, Malfoy." Teddy said, sitting on my other side and grabbing the plate of bacon. "How're you holding up?"

"Fine, thanks." I said not quite kindly.

"Don't worry. First game's always the hardest, then you're fine." he said. "Just do what you do when we're at practice and you'll be golden."

"But it's not practice, Teddy. And word around school is that Ravenclaw's got a pretty good team this year. Lysander Longbottom is their Seeker."

"Oh, tosh. He'll be more interested in the Pugglumps than the Snitch." he said dismissively. "You'll be great. Come on, now, eat up."

"Arty,"

I turned to see Louis behind me, giving me a smile. "Good luck on the match today."

"Erm, thanks." I said, unconsciously brushing away a strand of hair that had escaped my braid.

"I'll have a front row seat." he promised, heading back to his table.

I smiled, humiliated in the fact that I was probably blushing furiously. Turning back to my food, I noticed Teddy giving me a look. "Oh, what now?"

"Oh, nothing. You and goody-two-shoulders look good together." he said casually.

Now I knew my cheeks were burning. Louis' steady, broad shoulders were among his more noticeable traits. "We're not together."

"Says you." he snorted.

"I'm going to go change into my uniform." I announced, getting up.

"You know, I think I will, too-"

"T-Teddy!" Al suddenly interrupted. "I actually have a q-question for you."

"Oh, alright then." Teddy said curiously, sitting back down. I hurriedly walked away, throwing my brother a grateful glance as I went.

I was the only one in the locker rooms when I got there. I quickly changed into my scarlet and gold Quidditch robes, still feeling a bit jumpy. I was pacing back and forth, probably wearing a trench into the floor, when James walked in. "Oh, hullo." he said in surprise, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "You're here early."

"Couldn't wait." I told him.

"Well, here, you can help me get things set up." he said. "We need to get the brooms and the game plan drawings out."

"I'll get the brooms." I said, heading over to the locked cabinet. James tossed me the key, and I set to arranging the brooms out in a very straight line. Normally I would have just tossed them into a pile with a good-natured, "To hell with it", but just now I was more concerned with not being afraid of the upcoming match.

The rest of the team showed up in quick succession, starting with Teddy and ending with Oswald Jones. James went through the game plan with us for the millionth time, then looked at us all seriously. "Now, it's the first game of the season. Of course we're all a bit nervous."

"Speak for yourself." Teddy said, lounging lazily on the bench.

"But don't let it get to you." James continued, ignoring him. "We have a fantastic team this year, and I don't doubt that we'll win. Are you ready?"

There was a resounding "YEAH!" and he nodded. "Good. Let's go get 'em!"

We each took up a broom and trooped out to the pitch. My heart skipped a beat as I saw the assembly of the entire school there. Now they were all looking at us. I could hear the Slytherins booing and shouting mean things, but I didn't care. Louis was smiling at me from the front of the stands. I smiled back as well as I could, then mounted my broom. At Madame Hooch's whistle, I kicked off from the ground as hard as I could, shooting up into the air. I circled above the game, watching and waiting. In the first five minutes, Ravenclaw managed to score a goal. But Julie Drews put one in their hoop a few minutes later. Erik Lynn blocked more than a few shots, and he seemed to flail around a little less than the Ravenclaw Keeper.

Then I saw it. A flash of gold speeding past a Ravenclaw Beater. I zoomed after it, immediately followed by Lysander Longbottom. I lost sight of it, though, as it ducked behind Donald McConnaughy. The Beater I was next to took this chance to send a Bludger at me, but I managed to twist out of the way just in time. I went back up above the players to keep watch again. We were now up by two points, but from how well the Ravenclaws were playing, I was afraid it wouldn't last. Another Bludger came at me, and I rolled to the left. Mid-turn, I saw the Snitch again. It was next to the Ravenclaw goal post. I dove for it, putting on as much speed as I could to beat Lysander, almost flat against my broom. So close... so close...

I felt the exhilaration as my fingers closed around the tiny gold Snitch. I let out a burst of laughter as I held it up, smiling. But it was short-lived. A Bludger came rocketing out of nowhere and slammed into the side of my head.

It was the loudest sound I never heard. Instead of hearing it with my ears, it was like the sound was transmitted through my entire body. I remember an explosive blast of pain, then nothing.

**. . .**

"Do you think she'll be okay?"

"'Course she will. Madame Pomfrey can patch up anything."

"She took a pretty bad hit. She fell off her broom!"

"People fall off their brooms all the time, doesn't mean they'll die."

"Quit talking about me." I mumbled, stirring awake to see my team standing around me. "I can hear every word you're saying."

James laughed. "See, told you she'd be fine."

"How do you feel?" Julie asked anxiously.

"Like I was just hit in the head with a Bludger." I told her. I looked at James. "What happened, exactly?"

"It was an honest mistake, really." he said. "Matthew Nelson hit a Bludger your way, not realizing the game was over. He was penalized, of course, but it didn't really matter."

"It was a wonder you managed to hold onto the Snitch." Oswald Jones said with a smile. "They literally had to pry it out of your hand."

"Is she awake?" called a panicked voice. Mickey pushed her way to my bedside, an exasperated Al at her heels. He shrugged at me as though to say, "What did you expect?"

"Yes, I'm awake, Mickey." I assured her.

"Thank _Merlin_! I watched you fall off your broom – _instantly, _you know? Right after you got hit! 'Course, I feared the worst, and-"

"Mickey," I interrupted patiently. "I'm fine. Just a bump on the head."

"Well, anyway, congratulations." Teddy said. "You won the match for us."

"Not like you needed any help." I snorted. "But thanks."

"What is this? _Eight_ people?" Madame Pomfrey exclaimed, bustling into the room. "All of you! Out! Out!"

I grinned as they were all shepherded out the door, casting silly looks at me as they went. In the quiet I was left in, I settled down against the pillows to sleep. It felt like it had been a very long day, even though I'd been unconscious for most of it. I was just drifting off when I heard a slight tapping noise.

"Knock knock."

I opened my eyes to see Louis standing in the doorway, knuckles resting on the door frame and a pink rose in his hand. "Thought I might come to cheer you up. Seems I've missed the welcoming committee, though."

"Oh, it's alright." I said, shifting so I could sit straighter and desperately trying to ignore the butterflies in my stomach.

"Matt says he's sorry. He didn't mean to hit you so hard." he said.

I waved a hand. "Oh, tosh, it's his job."

"I brought you a flower. Obviously." he said, holding out the rose. "Thought it might make you feel better."

"I feel completely healed already." I said with a smile, taking the rose. "You're sweet."

"Just trying to help."

"Sorry to disturb you again, Arty, but I've forgotten my – Oh. Am I interrupting something?" Teddy said, walking into the room and pausing when he spotted Louis.

"What do you need, Teddy?" I asked not quite kindly.

"Left my gloves." he said, coming over and taking them from my bedside table. "Don't you two get up to any shenanigans, now. I might have to report you to Rosie the Prefect."

"Go _away_, Teddy."

We watched him as he left, whistling, and I sighed. "He has to ruin _everything_." I groaned.

Louis chuckled. "He's just trying to take the mickey out of you. Why don't you get some rest? You must be tired."

"Very." I said, settling down on the pillows once more.

Then, a bit hesitantly, he quickly leaned down and kissed my cheek. "Sleep well." he muttered before leaving the Hospital Wing.

Right. As if I could sleep after _that_.

**. . .**

**I really need to stop making them so cute. You guys might start to actually like them. **

**Lol, Teddy the Cockblocker. :)**


End file.
